Department for Transport

Dartford-Thurrock Crossing: Tolls

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of unofficial Dartcharge websites.

Jesse Norman: Dart Charge estimates that there are at least nine unofficial web sites in operation. This is subject to change as websites are added, removed, changed or temporarily unavailable.

Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will run a public information campaign to raise awareness of the effect of engine idling on public health.

Andrew Jones: Air pollution is an important challenge and Government is involved in a wide range of actions tackling it. Local Authorities are often best placed to run such campaigns, as they are able to focus on areas where idling is a particular problem. Vehicle manufacturers are increasingly offering automatic stop-start systems which help save fuel and CO2 emissions.

Motorways: Safety

Sir Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport,  how many extra emergency refuge areas have been added to existing stretches of all lane running motorways.

Jesse Norman: Reviews of the first two schemes to be designed to the all lane running standard, both on the M25, shows they are performing well and in line with expectations; successfully increasing capacity and improving journeys for motorists. These reviews found that the M25 schemes delivered an overall 27% safety improvement. Nevertheless, to help drivers feel more confident they can find a place to stop in an emergency, Highways England have committed to reducing the maximum spacing of emergency areas which is currently about every mile and a half (about 90 seconds at 60mph), to around every mile (about every minute at 60mph). This will take place on new schemes being constructed from 2020 onwards. Currently the average spacing on all lane running sections is just over a mile. In addition, in the next twelve months construction work will commence to install 10 additional emergency refuge areas on the M25.

Motorways: Safety

Sir Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many additional emergency refuge areas he plans to add to existing stretches of all lane running motorways in the next twelve months.

Jesse Norman: In the next twelve months construction work will commence to install 10 additional emergency refuge areas on the M25. In addition, Highways England are also enhancing the visibility of emergency areas on all new and existing smart motorways by installing orange surfacing and improved, more frequent signs. These changes are designed to help drivers feel more confident that they can find a safe place to stop in an emergency.

Motorways: Safety

Sir Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's timescale is for all lane running motorways to have emergency refuge areas spaced at no more than one mile apart.

Jesse Norman: To help drivers feel more confident they can find a place to stop in an emergency, Highways England have committed to reducing the maximum spacing of emergency areas which is currently about every mile and a half (about 90 seconds at 60mph), to around every mile (about every minute at 60mph). This will take place on schemes being constructed from 2020 onwards.

Traffic Officers: Injuries

Sir Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what data his Department collects on the number of Highways England traffic officers who are injured while on duty each year.

Jesse Norman: In accordance with the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDORS) 2013 and as part of its Health and management system, Highways England collects data for all its staff, including Traffic Officers in the following categories:- RIDDOR Fatality, RIDDOR Specified Injury, RIDDOR Greater than 7 day absence from work, lost time injury between 4 and 7 day, lost time injury between 1 and 3 days.

Motorways: Safety

Sir Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the relative safety of breaking down in a live lane on an all lane running motorway and a motorway that has a hard shoulder.

Jesse Norman: The original safety assessment of all lane running included the safety of a vehicle stopping in a running lane during peak and off-peak periods. It also identified a range of measures, such as the provision of traffic management technology and emergency areas, designed to ensure overall all lane running safety levels would be at least as safe as those of a traditional motorway with a hard shoulder. The smart motorway schemes between junctions J5-7 and 23-27 of the M25 were the first to be designed to the all lane running standard, and were completed in 2014. The performance of both schemes was monitored and reports published after one, two and three years of operation which included an assessment of safety and performance data. M25 3 year evaluation reports: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/m25-junction-5-to-7-third-year-evaluation-report https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/m25-junction-23-to-27-third-year-evaluation-report The review shows that the all lane running sections are performing well and in line with expectations; successfully increasing capacity and improving journeys for motorists. These reviews found that the M25 schemes delivered an overall 27% safety improvement.

Driving Tests: Bournemouth

Sir Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many driving test appointments were rearranged as a result of the temporary closure of Bournemouth driving test centre.

Jesse Norman: Since the temporary closure of Bournemouth driving test centre, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has rearranged 680 car practical test appointments.

Taxis: Guide Dogs

Faisal Rashid: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to prevent taxi drivers from refusing to take passengers with guide dogs.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Sections 168 and 170 of the Equality Act 2010 already require taxi and PHV drivers to accept passengers accompanied by assistance dogs without charging them extra. The Government expects drivers to comply with the law and encourages local licensing authorities to take robust action against those unwilling to do so. Drivers convicted of a relevant offence face fines of up to £1000. The Government is considering what further action might be required to eliminate illegal discrimination against assistance dog owners, and has accepted the recommendation of the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and PHV licensing that drivers should be required to complete disability awareness training through the introduction of National Minimum Standards. We will bring forward legislation when Parliamentary time permits.

Aviation: Exhaust Emissions

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps he has taken to reduce carbon emissions in aviation.

Jesse Norman: In December 2018, the Government published a green paper consultation on its new aviation strategy, Aviation 2050. The strategy proposes a comprehensive approach to tackling aviation’s carbon emissions, taking into account the UK’s domestic and international obligations to ensure that aviation contributes its fair share to action on climate change. The white paper will be published later this year and will take into account recent advice from the Committee on Climate Change. The Government supports a range of measures to achieve its 2050 vision of reducing aviation carbon emissions, including efficiency improvements in technology, operations and air traffic management, use of renewable fuels and market-based measures. Recently, the Government extended eligibility for rewards under the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO) to aviation fuels, and is making available up to £20 million of matched capital funding to projects that will produce low carbon waste-based fuels to be used for aviation and Heavy Goods Vehicles through the Future Fuels for Flight and Freight Competition (F4C). The UK was instrumental in reaching agreement on the global carbon offsetting measure for aviation (CORSIA) in 2016 and continues to be actively involved in negotiating for a scheme that is environmentally effective and robust. The green paper also states that the UK will encourage ICAO to agree a long term emissions reduction goal at its 41st Assembly in 2022.

Railways: Trespass

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the fine is for trespassing on national rail lines; whether his Department plans to increase the penalties for such trespass; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure that such trespassers are prosecuted.

Andrew Jones: The offence of trespass is subject to a fine up to £1000. DfT is not aware of any plans for this to be increased. In addition a Penalty Notice for Disorder can be issued to any offender over 18 years of age and the amount is currently £60. Prosecutions are a matter for the police and the courts. However, as well as prosecutions there are other measures available to the police including a caution, community resolution, or other outcomes outside of the justice system.

Railways: Trespass

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many successful prosecutions there were of people trespassing on national rail lines in (a) 2017 and (b) 2018.

Andrew Jones: In (a) 2017:- according to British Transport Police data there were 121 convictions for trespass and (b) in 2018 there were 139.

Railways: Devon

Scott Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans the Government has to reopen the Okehampton to Exeter train route.

Andrew Jones: Currently, Great Western Railway only operates train services to Okehampton on summer Sundays. In Investing in the South West published on 15 February 2019, the Secretary of State said he wanted to bring regular train services back to Okehampton. A Strategic Vision for Rail published on 29 November 2017 made clear that all schemes for reopening railway lines would need to demonstrate a strong business case where they are seeking any available Government funding

Roads: Accidents

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress the Road Collision Investigation Project has made; and what the timetable is for that project to report and make recommendations to Government.

Jesse Norman: The Road Collision Investigation Project is being run by The RAC Foundation. Good progress has been made in a number of areas. The first in a series of reports from the project describes how accident causation models have changed over time and details the rationale for taking a systems approach to collision investigation. The report is available online at:https://www.racfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/Models_and_methods_for_collision_analysis_Stanton_March_2019.pdf  More information on the scope and timetable of the project can be found at: https://www.racfoundation.org/collaborations/road-collision-investigation-project

Driver Information Systems

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to improve provision of information about (a) road safety, (b) suitability of roads for heavy good traffic and (c) speeding area hazards to companies that provide information for satellite navigation systems.

Jesse Norman: The Department is not responsible for the information provided by satellite navigation systems. These systems are commercial products which assist drivers with navigation and information about the routes. Guidance provided by these satellite navigation systems should only ever be considered as advisory. However, Highways England publishes its traffic flow information and the Department is also aware that manufacturers produce satellite navigation devices for lorries in order to provide them with routing information appropriate to their vehicle.

High Speed Two: Staff

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, (a) how many and (b) in which locations are office premises to accommodate HS2 staff (i) owned, (ii) leased and (iii) rented; and what the (A) length of tenure, (B) annual cost or purchase price, (C) number of people working in and (D) who lessor or vendor is for each of those office premises in the latest period for which figures are available.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: HS2 Ltd relocated its headquarters from London to the Midlands 3 years ago, and has now established a new base in Manchester city centre, emphasising the benefit of having a presence in areas along the route. Details of these office premises are detailed below.   LocationTenureLength of TenureNo of Desks*LessorAnnual net total costs to meet all obligations under the lease/licence £6,338,387London (Euston)Lease10 years948Secretary of State for TransportLondon (Westminster)Civil Estate Occupancy Agreement5 years113Department for EducationBirmingham (2 Snowhill)Lease15 years1,0602 Snowhill Birmingham SARLBirmingham (1 Victoria Square)Serviced Offices (Licence)2 years76RegusManchester (Barlow House)Lease3 years8Secretary of State for Health *HS2 Ltd operate a flexible working system and staff can work at any location, depending on business need(s). HS2 Ltd also co-locate with contractors. Therefore the number of desks does not directly relate to the number of HS2 Ltd staff working at each location.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the numbers of properties acquired by HS2 to enable the construction; and how many of those properties (a) are empty and (b) have been let and how much rental income of those properties was; and how many of those properties have required repairs or renovations and what the cost of those repairs or renovations was.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: We have acquired 529 properties within the current safeguarded area across the more than 300-mile-long HS2 route. Of those properties 262 are currently let and provided £3,066,662 of rental income in financial year 2018/19. The annualised rent roll for the total residential property portfolio - including the property in safeguarding - is currently £10,953,843. All the properties acquired are likely to require a level of compliance, repair or refurbishment works prior to letting. As a competent landlord, we have a responsibility to ensure the properties we let are safe and are compliant. The residential properties we acquire have all been occupied by the previous owner and as such all have a degree of compliant work required, such as fire safety, to ensure they can be let without risk of harm to our tenants. The cost of the works relating to the total residential property portfolio was £18,541,003 in financial year 2018/19.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the latest estimate is at today's prices of the value of the properties that HS2 Ltd have purchased to facilitate the construction of High Speed Two.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Since the HS2 property compensation schemes were introduced, the Government has spent approximately £2.3 billion up to March 2019 (nominal prices) on land and property across the three phases. This has been used to acquire and provide compensation for properties across the more than 300 mile route which is expected to generate £92.2bn (2015 prices) of transport and wider economic benefits.

Railways: Standards

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of the number of train cancellations in 2018.

Andrew Jones: The industry definition for cancellations includes those trains which did not complete their full journey or failed to call at one or more stations. Around 4% of planned services met this criteria between 7 January 2018 and 5 January 2019.

Bus Services: Disability

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timetable is for bringing forward secondary legislation to introduce audio-visual information on all buses; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Inclusive Transport Strategy, published in July 2018, what steps his Department is taking to ensure a significant increase in the availability of audio visual announcements on bus services by 2022; and if he will make a statement.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Government understands the importance of accessible on-board information in helping bus passengers to travel with confidence, and in Summer 2018 published a public consultation on proposals to require its provision on local bus services throughout Great Britain. We continue to analyse responses to the consultation and expect to announce our next steps regarding the making of Regulations and publication of guidance later in the year. In the meantime we are encouraging bus companies to improve the provision of accessible information onboard their services without waiting for the Regulations, and we have committed to supporting smaller operators to do this, with £2m of targeted funding.

East Midlands Rail Franchise

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department was responsible for conducting the East Midlands Trains franchise competition; and if this administration of the process includes the (a) scoping, (b) evaluation of compliance and (c) award of franchise bids.

Andrew Jones: The Department for Transport conducted the East Midlands franchise competition as per the usual process for franchising: specifying the minimum requirements for bids, evaluating bidders’ proposals against those requirements, reviewing bids to check whether they were compliant with the rules of the competition and awarding the franchise contract.

Cycleways and Pedestrian Areas: Horses

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing horses to use pedestrian and cycle paths as shared paths.

Jesse Norman: Shared use routes are designed to accommodate the movement of pedestrians and cyclists. Signs are prescribed in the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016 to indicate a route shared by horses as well, and it is for local traffic authorities to determine for themselves if this is desirable or practical, taking into account the possible impacts on each road user group.

Great Northern Railway Line

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to tackle the cancellation of trains on the Great Northern Line at Oakleigh Park.

Andrew Jones: The Department is aware that, despite overall punctuality improvements in recent months, there has been a high level of cancellations on the Great Northern route recently, and has raised this issue with the operator. GTR has confirmed that it has put in place some operational changes during the last week which we expect to improve the situation, and officials will continue to monitor performance to ensure that there is an improvement. Brand new trains with more capacity are replacing old 1970s rolling stock on the Great Northern Line which will transform the passenger experience on this line. They are currently being introduced into service and will provide additional passenger benefits such as WiFi, air conditioning and a plug socket at every seat. Drivers are currently training on the new rolling stock which has reduced GTR’s staffing resilience, and has contributed to the level of cancellations. We continue to press GTR to introduce these new trains without disruption to passengers.

Blue Badge Scheme

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the 2019 changes to Blue Badges are implemented at local authority level.

Jesse Norman: On 30th April, the Department for Transport laid The Disabled Persons (Badges for Motor Vehicles) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019 No. 891). From 30th August 2019, local authorities will be required by law to implement the changes being introduced under the expanded Blue Badge eligibility criteria for non-physical disabilities. The Department for Transport is currently finalising the guidance necessary for local authorities to assess the new types of applications, which it plans to publish shortly.

Model Aircraft: Registration

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) consultation (CAP1775), what recent discussions he has had with the CAA on the potential introduction of (a) compulsory registration by model aircraft enthusiasts with the CAA, (b) registration fees, (c) age restrictions and (d) competency requirements.

Jesse Norman: Department for Transport Ministers and officials have regular discussions with the CAA, including on the Drone Operator Registration Scheme and competency testing requirements, which will apply from November 2019. These will apply to all unmanned aircraft below 250g, including drones and model aircraft.These are part of a package of measures to address the safety and security challenges that unmanned aircraft pose. They will help law enforcement agencies to tackle the misuse of such aircraft effectively, alongside new Police powers to be introduced in the forthcoming Drones Bill.

Network Rail: Debts

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate has he made of  the (a) level of Network Rail's debt and (b) cost of servicing that debt in (a) 2019, (b) 2020, (c) 2021, (d) 2022 and (e) 2023.

Andrew Jones: The attached table sets out Network Rail’s debt and the debt servicing costs.  



Table of Network Rail's Debt and Servicing Costs
(Word Document, 15.82 KB)

Network Rail: Property

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much of the £1.46 billion generated by Network Rail's property sale was used to (a) fund rail upgrades and (b) cover a funding shortfall in the budget between 2014 and 2019.

Andrew Jones: All the proceeds from the sale were retained by Network Rail and reinvested into the rail network. The sale helped fund major improvements for the benefit of passengers, taxpayers and the wider UK economy.

Channel Tunnel Railway Line: Electric Cables

Andy McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent representations the UK Government has made to the Channel Tunnel Intergovernmental Commission on regulatory approval for the installation of cabling for the Eleclink electricity interconnector between the UK and France.

Andrew Jones: The UK Government is represented on both the Channel Tunnel Intergovernmental Commission (IGC) and the Channel Tunnel Safety Authority (CTSA). These groups meet several times each year and continue to work with Eleclink and Eurotunnel to progress consideration of this issue, following the suspension of consent for the project on safety grounds in October 2017. In the light of the UK Government’s active role in relation to both the IGC and CTSA, the Government has not made separate representations to the IGC on the ElecLink project.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Climate Change

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on the UK's contribution to tackling climate change.

Chris Skidmore: I refer my hon Friend to the answer I gave to my hon Friend the hon. Member for Crawley (Henry Smith) to Question 253562.

York Energy (UK) Holdings

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether a guarantor or bond has been offered by or sought from York Energy (UK) Holdings or Alpha Energy (UK) or its investors to underwrite the proposed transfer of petroleum assets to the newly incorporated limited company York Energy (UK) Holdings Ltd.

Chris Skidmore: The potential sale of Third Energy to York Energy (UK) Holdings Ltd is a commercial agreement between the relevant parties. Therefore, it would not be appropriate for Government to comment.

York Energy (UK) Holdings

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether regulatory approval has been granted for the transfer of onshore licences held by Third Energy Onshore Limited to York Energy (UK)  Holdings.

Chris Skidmore: The potential sale of Third Energy to York Energy (UK) Holdings Ltd is a commercial agreement between the relevant parties. Therefore, it would not be appropriate for Government to comment. Further information relating to the Oil and Gas Authority’s role with regard to licence change of control can be found here: https://www.ogauthority.co.uk/licensing-consents/licensing-system/change-of-control/.

Solar Power: Feed-in Tariffs

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the volume of rooftop solar that has been deployed since the closure of the  Feed-In Tariff scheme and the Export Tariff.

Chris Skidmore: The number of domestic solar installations during April 2019 will be published by BEIS on Thursday 30 May using information from the MCS (Microgeneration Certification Scheme) installation database. These are provisional numbers which are subject to revision in future publications. Solar photovoltaic deployment statistics is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/solar-photovoltaics-deployment.

Minimum Wage: Non-payment

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he plans to respond to the Low Pay Commission's report entitled Non-compliance and enforcement of the national minimum wage, published April 2019.

Kelly Tolhurst: Enforcement of the National Minimum and National Living Wage (NMW) is a priority for the Government. Since 2015 we have doubled the budget to enforce the NMW and we are taking tough action against the minority of employers who underpay. In 2018/19 HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) identified a record £24.4 million in arrears for over 220,000 workers and issued over £17 million in penalties to non-compliant employers. Later this year, we will publish a NMW enforcement and compliance report. This report will discuss the state of NMW non-compliance for 2018/19; the recommendations made by the LPC in their April 2019 report; and plans for NMW enforcement over the coming year.

Minimum Wage: Non-payment

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 16 May 2019 to Question 252048, Living Wage and Minimum Wage: Non-payment, whether his Department has begun drafting the review of the National Minimum Wage Naming Scheme; and by what date he plans to publish that review.

Kelly Tolhurst: The review of the National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage Naming Scheme has begun and work remains ongoing; there is currently no set date for completion. Any changes resulting from this will be communicated through an update of our published enforcement policy document. The current version of this document can be found online at the below address:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/656568/nmw-enforcement-beis_-_policy_doc_-_full_vFINAL__3_.pdf

Energy: Billing

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what representations he has received on requiring companies using continuous payment authorities to contact customers in advance of the automatic renewal date to provide the option to cancel.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Department has received representations regarding companies using continuous payment authorities. In the Consumer Green Paper, ‘Modernising Consumer Markets’ published last year, the Government announced that it had asked the Consumer Protection Partnership to assess the issues with subscriptions and to recommend any further actions needed. The Government is considering the advice received and will publish a White Paper in due course.

Post Offices

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the sustainability of the Post Office Network.

Kelly Tolhurst: The Government recognises the critical role that post offices play in communities and for small businesses across the UK. This is why the Government committed to safeguard the post office network and protect existing rural services. The overall number of post offices across the UK remains at its most stable in decades with over 11,500 branches thanks to significant Government investment of over £2 billion since 2010. While the Government sets the strategic direction for the Post Office, it allows the company the commercial freedom to deliver this strategy as an independent business.The operation and management of the Post Office Network are operational matters for Post Office Limited.I have therefore asked Alisdair Cameron, the Group interim Chief Executive of Post Office Limited, to write to the hon Member on this matter. A copy of his reply will be placed in the libraries of the House.

Work Experience: Pay

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent steps he has taken to ensure that interns are paid at least (a) the national minimum wage and (b) the national living wage.

Kelly Tolhurst: The law is clear that any individual performing work is entitled to receive the National Minimum and National Living Wage (NMW). The Government is committed to enforcing this right. In 2018/19 HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) identified a record £24.4 million in arrears for over 220,000 workers and issued over £17 million in penalties to non-compliant employers. The budget to enforce the NMW stands at its highest ever. HMRC have contacted over 2,000 employers found to be advertising unpaid internships online to ensure they are compliant with the law. They have also issued over 15,000 letters to employers in industries where internships are common to remind them of their responsibilities. Earlier this month my hon Friend the Minister of State (Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport) (Digital Policy) (Margot James) and I co-hosted a roundtable on internships with employers and organisations in the creative industries. Discussion focused on how Government can work better with employers to raise the profile of existing rules and ensure that interns are paid in accordance with NMW law. The event provided important insight which will be used to improve compliance with the law across all sectors. Anyone who feels they are being underpaid the NMW should contact Acas for free impartial advice or make a complaint directly to HMRC through their online form. HMRC follow up on every worker complaint received, even those which are anonymous.

Royal Mail: Standards

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment the Department has made of the performance of Royal Mail in relation to the (a) number of deliveries, (b) number of failed deliveries and (c) number of deliveries taking more than four weeks in the latest period for which information is available.

Kelly Tolhurst: Royal Mail is required to publish quarterly Quality of Service reports, against delivery targets set and reviewed by the postal industry regulator Ofcom. These can be found on Royal Mail’s website.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Sick Leave

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many and what proportion of officials in his Department took sick leave for reasons relating to stress in the last 12 months; what proportion that leave was of total sick leave taken in his Department; and what the cost was to his Department of officials taking sick leave over that period.

Sir Alan Duncan: Based on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) human resources management system, 41 FCO UK-based staff took sick leave related to stress in 2018. This does not include staff who were absent but no sick leave reason is recorded against them. This accounts for 0.85 per cent of FCO UK-based staff using our headcount figure as of 31 December 2018 (4,839). Sick leave for reasons related to stress in 2018 accounted for 10.5 per cent of total recorded sick days, and equated to 0.3 Average Working Days Lost per person. The cost to the paybill of all sick leave taken by FCO UK-based staff in 2018 was £3,386,787. Of this, the cost of sick leave taken for stress-related reasons was £355,898.

Falkland Islands: Sovereignty

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking in response to media reports on 6 May 2019 that Argentine nationalists have travelled to the Falklands dressed in combat gear and intimidated residents.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Governor of the Falkland Islands and Commander British Forces provide advice and assistance to the Falkland Islands Government (FIG) when requested by the FIG.The Islands have a growing tourist industry and most visits to the Falkland Islands are trouble free. It is a shame that a minority of visitors have recently taken advantage of the Argentine cemetery, which should be a place of respect and dignity, to make these political statements. It is upsetting for the Islanders and I am sure it is not welcomed by the families of the men in those graves either.

Bahrain: Human Rights

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the Bahraini ambassador on that country's laws on human rights.

Dr Andrew Murrison: We regularly discuss human rights and reform with the Government of Bahrain, including at the biannual UK-Bahrain Joint Working Group meeting that most recently took place in February 2019. We welcome the progress made by Bahrain on their reform programme, including the introduction of the new legislation on alternatives to punishment and new proposed legislation on juvenile justice. Bahrain remains a Foreign and Commonwealth Office human rights priority country and the British Government continues to encourage the Government of Bahrain to meet its human rights obligations, in both public and private conversations.

Saudi Arabia: Arms Trade

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Written Statement of 25 March 2014 on Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, what effect the killing of Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Arabian embassy in Turkey on 2 October 2018 has had on the application of guidance under sub paragraphs (a) and (b) of criteria six to decisions on licensing exports to Saudi Arabia; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: A licence would not be issued to Saudi Arabia or any other destination if to do so would be inconsistent with any provision of the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria. The situation is kept under careful and continual review. As the Foreign Secretary has said, the Government condemns Jamal Khashoggi’s killing in the strongest possible terms. The Government remains clear that anyone found responsible must be held fully accountable. The UK was signatory to the joint statement on 7 March at the United Nations Human Rights Council which reiterated condemnation of the killing of Jamal Khashoggi. The statement called for investigations into the killing to be prompt, effective and thorough, independent and impartial, and transparent.

Libya: Asylum

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to resettle vulnerable refugees and asylum-seekers from Libya; and what support his Department provides to dedicated search and rescue teams in the Mediterranean for those trying to flee Libya.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​Following the UNHCR's urgent appeal for resettlement places, the UK has committed to participate in the resettlement of the most vulnerable refugees who have been evacuated by UNHCR from Libya to Niger. This is in addition to the UK's existing commitment to resettle up to 3,000 vulnerable refugee children and their families from the Middle East and North Africa more widely by 2020 under the Vulnerable Children's Resettlement Scheme. The UK Government currently supports the EU's Operation Sophia through the provision of staff to its Operational Headquarters. Presently the Operation's naval operations are temporarily suspended, however should the Operation's air surveillance assets observe a vessel in distress, relevant information is sent to the nearest Maritime Rescue and Coordination Centre to coordinate a response.

Turkey: Political Prisoners

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has has with his Turkish counterpart on political prisoners participating in hunger strikes in that country.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​I raised the issue most recently with the Turkish Ambassador on 13 May. While strongly condemning the ongoing violence perpetrated by the Kurdistan Workers' Party, a proscribed terrorist organisation in the UK, we have encouraged the Turkish authorities to implement the recommendations made by the Committee for the Prevention of Torture following their visit to Imrali prison where Mr Öcalan is detained. In this regard, I welcome the fact that Mr Öcalan was granted access to two lawyers on 2 May. I also note the comment made by Mr Öcalan, via his lawyers, that individuals should not pursue these hunger strikes to the point of serious illness or death.

Northern Ireland Office

Northern Ireland Office: Brexit

Mr David Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many officials in her Department have been seconded away from their normal duties to work on the UK's withdrawal from the EU; and what effect that secondment of staff has had on the effectiveness of her Department.

John Penrose: EU exit affects a number of work areas across the Department and will therefore encompass a proportion of workload for many staff, the amount of which will vary over time. The Department has restructured its approach to the way it handles EU exit work, moving from a central EU exit co-ordinating team of 7 to a position in which core EU Exit work is distributed more widely across the whole department. The number of staff working on leaving the EU will be kept under review to ensure we have the appropriate resources available.

Social Security Benefits: Terminal Illnesses

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of placing reform of the legal definition of terminal illness which determines fast-track access to social security payments for terminally ill claimants under the principle of public interest as set out in her Department's guidance on decision-making for Northern Ireland Departments during the period for Northern Ireland Executive formation.

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of a review by officials in the Northern Ireland Department for Communities of the legal definition of terminal illness which determines eligibility to fast-track access to social security payments for terminally ill claimants; and if she will make a statement.

John Penrose: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is aware of the Scottish Government’s recent changes to statutory guidance on terminal illness. Any decision to review the legal definition of terminal illness in Northern Ireland would be a matter for incoming Northern Ireland Ministers to consider.

Department of Health and Social Care

NHS: Pensions

Bill Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of the introduction of the (a) new NHS pension scheme in 2015, (b) reduction of the annual allowance for pension growth, (c) subsequent tapering of that allowance and (d) other cumulative changes in recent years to the NHS pension scheme on the (i) level of hours worked by practitioners and (ii) level of practitioner morale.

Stephen Hammond: The 2015 NHS Pension Scheme is valuable part of staff reward packages and remains one of the best schemes available. The reforms to public service pensions ensured that schemes are sustainable and the costs are fair to both staff and the taxpayer.Data is not collected on the impact of the new National Health Service pension scheme, other cumulative changes, or the annual allowance on the level of hours worked by practitioners, or practitioner morale.The Department recognises that the tapered annual allowance may contribute to decisions by NHS staff to retire early or limit their NHS commitments. The Government is listening carefully to concerns raised by senior doctors and NHS employers about the impact of tapered annual allowance.The Department has sought to make available to NHS Pension Scheme members all possible flexibility under Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs legislation and the current fiscal framework for public sector pension schemes. The Chancellor is considering the case for further flexibility in the NHS Pension Scheme.

Health Professions: Recruitment

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the number of (a) school nurses and (b) health visitors.

Jackie Doyle-Price: From April 2013, local authorities have been responsible for public health locally, including commissioning public health services for school aged children in their areas. In October 2015 responsibility for zero to five commissioning was also transferred to local authorities.It is therefore for local authorities to assess the health needs of their populations and commission the appropriate health visiting and school nursing services and workforce, based around local needs.

Pathology: Vacancies

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle the shortage of pathologists that can carry out post-mortem examinations for coroners.

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of pathologists available to conduct post-mortem examinations for coroners.

Caroline Dinenage: Most post-mortem examinations are carried out by pathologists who specialise in histopathology. However, post-mortems are not a requirement of the Certificate of Completion of Training in histopathology, therefore, the number of histopathologists who are qualified to carry out post-mortem examinations for coroners is not held centrally.Overall, in January 2019, there were 1,206 full time equivalent (FTE) consultant histopathologists in the National Health Service in England. This represents a 10% (119 FTE) increase compared to January 2010.Health Education England has committed to attract and retain more histopathologists by 2021 as part of its Cancer Workforce Plan for England published in December 2017. In 2019, 100% of specialist histopathology training places were filled.

Hospices: Children

James Frith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to additional funding for children’s palliative care announced in the NHS Long-Term Plan, whether he plans to allocate additional funding  to children’s hospices in England in 2019-20.

James Frith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the financial sustainability of charitable hospices.

Caroline Dinenage: As part of the NHS Long Term Plan, NHS England committed to increase its investment in children’s palliative care over the next five years by match funding clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) who commit to increase their investment in local children’s palliative and end of life care services. Subject to CCGs increasing investment, NHS England will match this by up to £7 million a year by 2023/24. This increase is in addition to the Children’s Hospice Grant, which provides an annual contribution of £11 million. NHS England is currently establishing financial reporting systems to monitor the baseline investment of CCGs in children’s palliative and end of life care services. This will enable match funding payments made to CCGs where the investments are increased above the investment baseline in the previous year. As baselining will be ongoing through 2019/20, and therefore match funding will not be available in this year, NHS England will be increasing the children’s hospice grant to £12 million for this period. With regards to financial sustainability of hospices, these are primarily charity-funded but receive some statutory funding from CCGS for providing local services. The amount of funding varies between CCGs, but on average adult hospices receive approximately 30% of their overall funding from National Health Service sources. CCGs are responsible for determining the level of NHS-funded hospice care locally and they are responsible for ensuring that the services they commission meet the needs of their local population.

Older People: Abuse

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to bring forward legislative proposals to reduce the abuse of older people in social care; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Dinenage: The Government has no plans to bring forward legislation to reduce the abuse of older people in social care.The Government is committed to preventing and reducing the risk of harm to people in vulnerable situations.The Care Act 2014 statutory guidance states that local authorities should ensure that the services they commission are safe, effective and of high quality. Where it is suspected that an individual may be at risk of abuse or neglect local authorities have a duty to carry out proportionate enquiries.Regulated providers have a key role in safeguarding adults. All professions are subject to employer checks and controls and employers in the health and care sector must satisfy themselves regarding the skills and competence of their staff and the Care Quality Commission monitors how well providers are doing this.

Social Services: Finance

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer in advance of the spending review on increasing funding for social care services.

Caroline Dinenage: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has regular discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on a variety of issues.

NHS: ICT

Steve Double: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will develop a national action plan to (a) provide all NHS hospitals with automated dispensing cabinets integrated with ePMA to improve patient safety and eradicate errors in medicine prescription and administration and (b) deliver on all other aspects of his Department's technology vision.

Caroline Dinenage: Funding has been identified (£68 million) to support the acceleration of the introduction of ePrescribing and Medicine Administration (ePMA) systems for which there is evidence to support benefit. Individual trusts are making their own determinations of requirements for technology such as automated cabinets and are introducing as required locally. Work to integrate such systems with ePMA has started and will be reinforced with the advent of medication messaging standards as these are developed.The Government has created NHSX, a joint unit between the Department, NHS England and NHS Improvement, to deliver the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care's Technology Vision and build on the Long Term Plan for the NHS. NHSX will combine all the levers of policy, implementation and change to allow a single-minded focus on giving the National Health Service the technology that patients and clinicians need.

Food Standards Agency and Food Standards Scotland

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much additional funding has been allocated to (a) the Food Standards Agency and (b) Food Standards Scotland for preparations for the UK leaving the EU.

Seema Kennedy: For financial years 2017/18, 2018/19 and 2019/20 the Food Standard Agency was allocated £30,900,000 cumulatively for preparations for the United Kingdom leaving the European Union. Food safety in Scotland is a devolved matter.

Breast Cancer: Screening

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many vacancies there are in (a) mammography and (b) breast radiology departments in England.

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many vacancies there are in (a) mammography and (b) breast radiology departments in each region.

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many vacancies there are in (a) mammography and (b) breast radiology departments by each county in England.

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many vacancies there are in (a) mammography and (b) breast radiology departments in each parliamentary constituency.

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many vacancies there are in (a) mammography and (b) breast radiology in each hospital trust.

Seema Kennedy: NHS Improvement publishes vacancy data for three staff groups; doctors, nurses and ‘other staff’. These vacancy statistics are published for England and at the regional level of North, Midlands and East, London and South. NHS Improvement does not specifically produce vacancy data for staff working in mammography or breast radiology at national, regional, county, constituency or hospital trust level.The latest NHS Improvement report can be found in the following link:https://improvement.nhs.uk/documents/4942/Performance_of_the_NHS_provider_sector_for_the_quarter_ended_31_Dec_2018.pdf

Animals and Food: Packaging

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that businesses are prepared to transition from the EC abbreviation health mark on packaging for animal carcasses and foods of animal origin to the GB abbreviation after the UK leaves the EU.

Seema Kennedy: To ensure that businesses are aware of the necessary changes to the health and identification marks, the Food Standard Agency (FSA) has produced guidance which explains the form of the mark and when the necessary changes will take effect. The FSA has worked with industry bodies to promote awareness of the guidance amongst members, as well as communicating directly with industry via key representative organisations. The FSA has and continues to attend and organise stakeholder meetings to promote awareness of the guidance. FSA operational staff and local authorities have also been briefed on the guidance so that they can promote awareness directly with food business operators. The guidance continues to be publicly available on the FSA’s website at the following link: https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/eu-exit-changes-to-health-and-identification-marks

Psychiatric Hospitals: Children

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that children are not unnecessarily admitted to mental health hospitals.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department is committing increased expenditure to support the provision of mental health services in the community, to reduce the need for children to be admitted to mental health hospitals unless absolutely necessary.Through the NHS Long Term Plan, published in January 2019, mental health funding will grow by at least £2.3 billion a year by 2023/24, with funding for children and young people’s mental health services growing faster than both overall National Health Service funding and total mental health spending. This extra investment will mean an extra 345,000 children and young people aged 0-25 will receive mental health support by 2023/24.The key proposals in ‘Transforming children and young people’s mental health provision: a green paper’ aim to improve early intervention. New mental health support teams will deliver evidence-based interventions in or close to schools and colleges for those with mild to moderate mental health issues in 25 trailblazer areas in England. 12 of the 25 trailblazer sites will pilot a four-week waiting time to speed up children and young people’s access to NHS mental health services.Over the next five years, the NHS will therefore continue to invest in expanding access to community-based mental health services to meet the needs of more children and young people.The NHS Long Term Plan prioritises services for children and young people, providing a clear focus on improving the health and wellbeing of children and young people with learning disabilities and/or autism, as well as committing to implementing ‘Building the right support’ in full, achieving at least a 50% reduction in the number of people with a learning disability or autism who are inpatients, compared to the figure in 2015, by the end of 2023/24.The Long Term Plan sets out specific commitments to achieve this by developing new models of care to provide care closer to home and investing in intensive, crisis and forensic community support. By 2023/24 children and young people with a learning disability, autism or both with the most complex needs will also have a designated keyworker. These will be initially provided to children and young people who are inpatients or at risk of being admitted to hospital.Furthermore, the Government is committed to reviewing mental health legislation so that it works better for both adults and children. We are currently considering the findings from the independent review of the Mental Health Act 1983, which covers how a person can be detained or sectioned for treatment and will respond in due course.

Nurses: Labour Turnover

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to retain nursing staff.

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the removal of the nursing bursary on the recruitment of nurses.

Stephen Hammond: NHS Improvement is leading a national retention programme across the National Health Service with an initial focus on improving retention of the nursing workforce, as well as the mental health clinical workforce.To date 110 trusts have completed the NHS Improvement Direct Support Programme. NHS Improvement is currently working with an additional 35 trusts and will be expanding the programme across the NHS and providing support to all remaining NHS trusts in England.The latest data from the University and College Admissions Service (February 2019) shows that there has been a 4.5% increase in applicants to nursing or midwifery courses at English universities when compared to this time last year (2018). The NHS Long Term Plan, published on 7 January 2019, sets out a vital strategic framework to ensure that over the next 10 years the NHS will have the staff it needs. This will ensure that nurses are able to offer the expert compassionate care that they are committed providing. To ensure a detailed plan that everyone in the NHS can get behind my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has asked Baroness Harding to lead an inclusive programme of work to set out a detailed workforce implementation plan to be published in due course.

Psychiatric Hospitals: Children

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the report entitled Far less than they deserve published by the Children’s Commissioner on 20 May 2019, what plans he has to  publish a national strategy to replace Transforming Care.

Caroline Dinenage: ‘Building the right support’, published in 2015 by NHS England, the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) is the national plan in England for reducing the number of people with learning disabilities or autistic people who are inpatients in mental health hospitals. It set out a clear framework for commissioners to reduce inpatient capacity by developing more community services for people with learning disabilities or autistic people with behaviour that challenges. The expectation was for a reduction in inpatient numbers of between 35 and 50% by March 2019.By the end of April 2019, inpatient numbers had reduced by 22%. National Health Service planning guidance for 2019/20 requires a 35% reduction in inpatients compared to 2015 no later than the end of 2019/20. The LGA and ADASS, as key delivery partners of the Transforming Care programme, will continue to support work to improve provision of suitable accommodation and services in the community and the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Education will remain accountable for ensuring that children and young people receive the support they need.The NHS Long Term Plan prioritises services for children and young people, providing a clear focus on improving the health and wellbeing of children and young people with learning disabilities and/or autism, as well as committing to implementing ‘Building the right support’ in full, achieving at least a 50% reduction in the number of people with a learning disability or autism who are inpatients, compared to the figure in 2015, by the end of 2023/24.The Long Term Plan sets out specific commitments to achieve this by developing new models of care to provide care closer to home and investing in intensive, crisis and forensic community support. By 2023/24 children and young people with a learning disability, autism or both with the most complex needs will also have a designated keyworker. These will be initially provided to children and young people who are inpatients or at risk of being admitted to hospital.Local health systems have been asked to develop plans for implementing the Long Term Plan’s commitments. These plans will be brought together in a national implementation programme for the Long Term Plan to 2023-24, and an NHS workforce implementation plan, by the end of 2019.

Sickle Cell Diseases

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2018 to Question 135010 on Sickle Cell Diseases, if he will provide updated estimates of the costs to the NHS of treating sickle cell anaemia in (a) England (b) each NHS England region and (c) each Clinical Commissioning Group area in each year since 2009-10.

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 8 December 2014 to Question 216527 on Sickle Cell Diseases, if he will provide updated estimates of the costs to NHS of admitted patient care episodes for sickle cell anaemia in (a) England, (b) each NHS England region and (c) each Clinical Commissioning Group area in each year since 2009-10.

Seema Kennedy: NHS England specialised commissioning only reports the costs of the National Health Service specialised commissioning services by region and hub for treating sickle cell disease, which includes sickle cell anaemia. This information is shown in the following table. The data is not broken down by clinical commissioning group (CCG) area. This information does not include non-specialised activity that CCGs may fund. Information was not collected prior to 2015/16 and information for 2018/19 is not currently available. Costs of NHS specialised commissioning services by region and hub for treating sickle cell diseaseRegionHub2015/162016/172017/18  £ million£ million£ millionLondon 29.931.044.8 Midlands and EastEast of England1.61.73.3 East Midlands0.80.81.4 West Midlands2.72.53.2Midlands and East Total 5.15.07.9 NorthNorth East0.10.20.2 North West2.82.32.3 Yorkshire & Humber1.10.50.9North Total 4.03.03.4 SouthSouth East1.81.92.6 South West0.20.20.7 Wessex0.50.50.9South Total 2.52.54.2   41.641.560.4 Source: Costs extracted from the annual CCG exercise.Between 2012/13 and 2018/19, approximately 117,000 patients were admitted to hospital with a primary diagnosis of sickle cell disease. Information for years prior to 2012/13 is not available. NHS England has advised that it is unable to separate expenditure between admitted patient care episodes and the overall costs provided in the table without incurring disproportionate cost.

Social Prescribing

Dr Sarah Wollaston: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his Department's policy is on social prescribing.

Caroline Dinenage: ‘Prevention is better than cure’, published by the Department in November 2018, highlighted the important role social prescribing can play in reducing people’s isolation and improving levels of activity.As set out in the NHS Long Term Plan, NHS England has committed to deliver at least £4.5 billion of new investment in primary medical and community health services over the next five years. Part of this investment will support the recruitment of over 1,000 trained social prescribing link workers - in place by the end of 2020/21 rising further by 2023/24, with the aim that over 900,000 people are able to be referred to social prescribing schemes by then.The Prevention document and the Long Term Plan can be found at the following links:www.gov.uk/government/publications/prevention-is-better-than-cure-our-vision-to-help-you-live-well-for-longerwww.longtermplan.nhs.uk/publication/nhs-long-term-plan/

Care Homes: Dementia

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to increase the number of care home places for people with dementia.

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that dementia patients can be accommodated in their own neighbourhoods.

Caroline Dinenage: Local authorities have a duty to ensure people including those with dementia receive appropriate care and support.Adult social care is a locally delivered system therefore local authorities are locally accountable for the delivery of care and support and retain significant discretion over how their functions are exercised. Different communities require different social care provision and local authorities are best placed to understand the needs of their constituents. We have given local authorities access to up to £3.9 billion more dedicated funding for adult social care this year, and a further £410 million is available for adults and children’s services. The Government will set out plans to reform the social care system to ensure it is sustainable for the future at the earliest opportunity.

Department for International Development

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking with with other donor countries help ensure the funding gap for the 2019 humanitarian response to the crisis in Yemen is closed.

Rory Stewart: We are very concerned by the potential funding cliff edge the UN is facing in June. The UN’s 2019 humanitarian appeal for Yemen is the largest in the world at $4.2 billion. The Geneva Pledging Conference in February of this year saw $2.6 billion pledged, approximately 20% of which has been disbursed to date. The UK is actively engaging with other large donors to encourage the rapid disbursement of funding to the UN to enable it to cover urgent needs. The UK has also brought forward funding and we will have disbursed over half of our £200 million pledge for this financial year (2019/2020) by the beginning of June. This included funds for UNICEF to respond rapidly to a spike in cholera. As a result, cholera cases have declined for four weeks in a row and we hope a wider outbreak has been avoided.

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans the Government has to increase the amount of humanitarian aid for Yemen in 2019.

Rory Stewart: On 24 February, the Prime Minister announced that the UK will provide an additional £200 million in response to the humanitarian crisis in Yemen for the next financial year (2019/2020). This was the third largest amount pledged at the UN 2019 Yemen Pledging conference and brings the total UK commitment to Yemen to £770 million since the conflict began in 2015. We are encouraging other large donors to disburse promptly and are confident that if this happens the UN and NGOs will be able to deliver a strong humanitarian response. The Geneva Pledging Conference in February of this year saw $2.6 billion pledged, approximately 20% of which has been disbursed to date. The UK has brought forward funding to cover urgent UN funding gaps and will have disbursed over half of our £200 million funding by the beginning of June. We will release our remaining funds promptly and in line with our partners’ funding requirements.

Internally Displaced People

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department is taking to help people displaced within their country of origin as a result of (a) conflict and (b) natural disasters.

Dr Andrew Murrison: The UK is committed to meeting the needs of all internally displaced persons, whether they are displaced as a result of conflict or natural disasters.  DFID provides funding to key agencies involved in responding to the needs of internally displaced persons, including the Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). The UK is a significant humanitarian donor in many countries with displaced populations. For example in South Sudan, in 2017/18 our support reached over 420,000 people with food assistance, over 370,000 women and children with nutrition support, and over 680,000 people with access to safe drinking water and/or improved sanitation facilities, many of whom are internally displaced. In Iraq, DFID support has helped provide food assistance to over 408,000 people, emergency cash transfers to over 274,000 people, and life-saving healthcare services to over 4.1m people, including those internally displaced. Additionally, in Syria where there are over 6 million of internally displaced persons, DFID has spent over £1 billion in humanitarian response. The UK has provided £36 million in response to Cyclone Idai which is estimated to have affected 2.6 million people in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. UK support includes the provision of an estimated 7,550 shelter kits and 100 family tents in Mozambique, emergency shelter for 65,000, food assistance for 150,000 people for two months in Malawi and health and child protection assistance in Zimbabwe. Furthermore the UK is working with UN Member states and the Secretary General to establish a High level Panel on Internally Displaced People, with aim of galvanising action to reduce the numbers of internally displaced people provide more effective protection and assistance.

Ethiopia: Internally Displaced People

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent discussions he has had with his Ethiopian counterpart on the involuntary return of displaced people from Gedeo to West Guji.

Harriett Baldwin: The Secretary of State is very concerned about the situation of Internally Displaced People in Ethiopia including Gedeo and West Guji, and of reports of involuntary returns. Our Ambassador and senior DFID officials have raised this with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Peace, that all IDP returns must be voluntary, safe and sustainable. The UK is currently supporting humanitarian agencies in Ethiopia to respond to the needs of IDPs and host communities affected by this crisis.

Department for Education

Social Services: Children

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment his Department has made of the financial sustainability of local government children’s services.

Nadhim Zahawi: Funding for children’s services is made available through the Local Government Finance Settlement. We are in the final year of a multi-year settlement deal and have made £46.4 billion available this year for local services including those for children’s services. The government has also made £410 million available to local authorities this year specifically for adult and children social care.My department is working with the sector, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and with HM Treasury, as part of our preparation for the next Spending Review, to understand the level of funding local government needs to meet demand and deliver statutory duties.

Schools: Notice Boards

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will reclassify school notice boards as wall linings in his review of fire safety in schools.

Nick Gibb: Schools must be safe places in which to study and to work. The Department intends to set a clear standard that is practical and achievable as well as easily understood.The Department, as part of the regular review of its standards for school buildings, has completed research into the flammability of notice boards used in schools.The outcome of this work is currently being used to clarify the specification the Department uses in relation to noticeboards in new school buildings and will also be included in an updated version of Building Bulletin 100 (Fire Safety) which is currently under review.The classification of materials used in construction is controlled by Building Regulations which are a matter for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Higher Education: Registration

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the (a) average length of time and (b) longest time was for a higher education establishment to receive their registration from the Office for Students.

Chris Skidmore: There is no meaningful average time for higher education establishments receiving an outcome on their Office for Students (OfS) registration application. This is because the time taken from initial receipt of the application to a final registration decision is dependent on a number of factors. These factors include the completeness of the application initially submitted, the scale of the clarificatory information requested by the assessor during the assessment process and the length of time taken by the provider to respond to such information requests. In addition, other factors include the time taken for the provider’s access and participation plan to be negotiated and approved, the likelihood of the provider to breach its ongoing conditions of registration, including the ways in which that would impact its students. Furthermore, consideration is also given to the overall readiness of the provider to be regulated. In cases where decisions that have been reached more quickly often relate to circumstances where the provider has submitted a near-complete application or where queries during the assessment have been minimal. In addition, more timely decisions can be made where the risk assessment suggests that the provider is unlikely to breach any of its ongoing conditions of registration. Cases that have taken longer to assess have typically involved several attempts to obtain relevant information from the provider. The risk assessment also suggests either that the provider does not satisfy one or more initial conditions of registration (in which case the provider may make representations against the proposed decision to refuse registration), or that the provider may be at increased risk of breaching one or more of its ongoing conditions of registration once registered. In these cases, the OfS is likely to conclude that the interests of students are best protected by taking regulatory action with which the provider must comply, such as applying specific conditions of registration or enhanced monitoring arrangements. Such occurrences would lengthen the timeframe for a decision on an application.

Teachers: Pensions

Janet Daby: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of women who made superannuation contributions to the Teachers Pension Scheme prior to 6 April 1988.

Nick Gibb: The Department has not undertaken such an estimate.As part of the Government’s 2014 review of survivor benefits in occupational pension schemes, in assessing the likely cost of retrospectively equalising survivor benefits for past periods of accrual, the Government Actuary’s Department did estimate what proportion of female members of the scheme have service before 1988. Further information can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/occupational-pension-schemes-review-of-survivor-benefits.

Schools: Charitable Donations

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of comprehensive primary school funding which comes from donations by parents or guardians of pupils.

Nick Gibb: The information requested, regarding the proportion of funding which comes from donations by parents or guardians of pupils, is not held centrally. Schools’ financial returns show that overall income from donations and voluntary funds has remained steady at about 0.7% of schools’ overall budgets since 2011-12.

Further Education: Domestic Visits

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether (a) he and (b) any Ministers in his Department visited a further education college on or between 13 and 17 May 2019.

Anne Milton: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, and ministers in the department did not visit a further education college on the dates of 13 and 17 May 2019 or between these dates.

Schools: Pollution

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department took to alert (a) schools and (b) nurseries to pollution episodes in England during April 2019.

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to protect children in (a) schools and (b) nurseries from pollution episodes.

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance his Department issued to (a) schools and (b) nurseries on protecting children from pollution episodes in England in April 2019.

Nick Gibb: Outdoor air quality is a responsibility of local authorities. The Department does not currently monitor air quality in schools, nurseries or other educational institutions. Where there are concerns about air quality, a local authority must prepare an air quality action plan. The Department has recently published ‘Building Bulletin 101 Ventilation of School Buildings’, which provides guidance on achieving good indoor air quality in new and refurbished schools.

Students: Suicide

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students have died by suicide at each UK university in each of the last 10 years.

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to improve student (a) wellbeing and (b) mental health.

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what training in health and wellbeing is required of university lecturers.

Chris Skidmore: Mental health is a priority for this government, which is why we continue to work closely with Universities UK (UUK) on embedding the Step Change programme within the sector. Step Change calls on higher education (HE) leaders to adopt mental health as a strategic priority and adopt a whole-institution approach to mental health, embedding it across all policies, cultures, curricula and practice. In addition, the government actively backs the introduction of a sector-led University Mental Health Charter, launched in June 2018. This will drive up standards in promoting student and staff mental health and wellbeing. It will invite universities to meet high standards of practice, including in areas such as leadership, early intervention and data collection. HE institutions (HEI) have legal responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 to support students, including those with mental health conditions. It is for HEIs to determine what welfare and counselling services they need to provide to their students to offer that support. The information requested is not held centrally regarding student suicide. However, in June 2018, the Office for National Statistics released experimental statistics estimating suicide among higher education students in England and Wales which can be found following this link: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/articles/estimatingsuicideamonghighereducationstudentsenglandandwalesexperimentalstatistics/2018-06-25. The government has worked with UUK, the Office for Students, and other stakeholders to develop guidance on measures to help prevent suicide and deal sensitively with issues that may arise when tragedy does occur. This guidance was published in September 2018, ahead of the 2018/19 academic year. As independent and autonomous bodies, HEIs are responsible for decisions regarding required training for their staff and have a duty of care to their staff, like all employers, as well as to their students.

Schools: Food Banks

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of schools in England and Wales that have opened foodbanks on their premises.

Nadhim Zahawi: The information requested is not held centrally. The department does not collect information on the number of schools in England and Wales that have opened foodbanks on their premises.We know that the reasons for people using food banks are varied and many. We will continue to reform the welfare system so that it encourages work whilst supporting those who need help – an approach that is based on clear evidence that work offers families the best opportunity to get out of poverty. This government continues to spend over £95 billion a year on working age welfare benefits for those who need them.The provision of a healthy meal for children from households who are out of work or on low incomes is of the upmost importance to the government. We want to make sure as many eligible pupils as possible are claiming their free school meals (FSM), and to make it as simple as possible for schools and local authorities to determine eligibility. Over 1.1million of the most disadvantaged children are eligible for and claiming FSM, this saves families hundreds of pounds each year.We have recently announced an additional £9.1 million will be spent ensuring the most disadvantaged children in 11 local authority areas will benefit from healthy food and enriching activities in the 2019 summer holidays. My department is also investing up to £26 million to the National Schools Breakfast Programme, to kick-start or improve breakfast clubs in over 1,700 schools in the most disadvantaged areas of the country.

Academies: Disclosure of Information

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of whistleblowing policies throughout academy trusts.

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to help ensure staff working for academy trusts can raise concerns about schools' governance.

Nadhim Zahawi: ​The department requires a high level of accountability and transparency of academy trusts. Academy trust accountability is founded on a clear framework communicated and regulated by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), through trusts’ funding agreement and the Academies Financial Handbook. The Academies Financial Handbook requires that all academy trusts have appropriate whistleblowing procedures in place. Academy trusts must also ensure that all concerns raised with them by whistleblowers are responded to properly and fairly. Whistleblowers can also report allegations of fraud or financial irregularity to the ESFA. The ESFA has published guidance about how to report such allegations, the actions the ESFA will take when it receives an allegation and the rights of whistleblowers. The guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-esfa-handles-allegations-of-suspected-fraud-or-financial-irregularity/how-esfa-handles-allegations-of-suspected-fraud-or-financial-irregularity.

Teachers: Training

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to increase the amount of bursary funding available to people training to be religious education teachers to ensure it is equal to other shortage subjects.

Nick Gibb: ​​The Department has increased bursary funding for religious education courses. In academic year 2019/20, religious education trainees with a 2:2 undergraduate degree or above will receive a £9,000 bursary. Previously a £9,000 bursary was only available to those with a first class degree, while those with a 2:1 degree received £4,000 and there was no funding available for other degree classes. These increases show the Department’s continuing commitment to recruiting religious education teachers. The Department will review bursary funding this summer, prior to announcing the offer for academic year 2020/21 courses in early autumn. This will involve making difficult decisions about where to deploy funding, which will be based on an assessment of current recruitment performance and available budget.

Ministry of Justice

Prisoners: Females

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women were taken into immediate custody from (a) Crown courts and (b) magistrates courts for sentences of (i) less than and (ii) more than six months for each offence classification in each police force area in England and Wales in 2018-19.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women sentenced to (a) less than and (b) more than six months were taken into immediate custody from each (i) magistrates and (ii) Crown court in North Wales in 2018-19; and what the offence classification was in each of those cases.

Edward Argar: The number of women given a custodial sentence of less than and more than six months, at Magistrates and Crown courts, by offence and police force area in 2018 is published in the Court Outcomes by Police Force Area data tool at the following link:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802045/court-outcomes-by-PFA-2018.xlsx The requested data can be gathered by:Select the relevant court in the ‘Court Type’ field (Magistrates/Crown)Select ‘2018’ in the ‘Year of Appearance’ fieldSelect ’02: Female’ in the ‘Sex’ fieldDrag the ‘Offence’ field into RowsSelect the relevant sentence lengths in the ‘Custodial Sentence Length’ field (six months or less/ greater than six months)Select the relevant police force area in the ‘Police Force Area’ field  The number of women given a custodial sentence less than and more than six months from each magistrates and Crown court in North Wales in 2018, with corresponding offence, is available in the attached tables. Our vision, as set out in our Female Offender Strategy, is to see fewer women coming into the criminal justice system and a greater proportion managed successfully in the community. There is persuasive evidence showing community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending. The MoJ study ‘The impact of short custodial sentences, community orders and suspended sentence orders on re-offending’ published in 2015 found that over a 1-year follow up period, a higher proportion of people re-offended having been sentenced to custody of under 12 months without supervision on release than other similar people given community orders. Unless we tackle the underlying causes of offending, we cannot protect the public from being victims of crime. Effective community orders can address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and alcohol or drug misuse needs, and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.



Table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 14.91 KB)

Prisoners: Females

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many adult women with no previous convictions were taken into immediate custody from (a) Crown courts and (b) magistrates courts for sentences of (i) below six months and (ii) six months and over in each police force area in England and Wales in 2018-19; and what the offence classification was in each of those cases.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many adult men with no previous convictions were taken into immediate custody from (a) Crown courts and (b) magistrates courts for sentences of (i) below six months and (ii) six months and over in each police force area in England and Wales in 2018-19; and what the offence classification was in each of those cases.

Edward Argar: Information on the numbers of adult women and adult men with no previous convictions who were taken into immediate custody from the Crown Courts and the Magistrates courts for sentences of below six months and six months and over are provided below. It is not possible to provide breakdowns by police force area because, due to low numbers, this would risk identification of the individuals concerned. Number of adult1 female offenders with no previous convictions2 sentenced to immediate custody by court type3, sentence length4,5 and offence type; England and Wales6, 2018Number of OffendersOffence type7Crown CourtMagistrates Court Less than 6 months6 months or moreLess than 6 months6 months or more Violence against the person114442 Sexual offences02500Robbery01700Theft Offences367675Criminal damage and arson02000Drug offences78002Possession of weapons31871Public order offences0830Miscellaneous crimes against society2814540Fraud offences39121Summary offences excluding motoring21141Summary motoring offences00100All offences4761611112 Source: Ministry of Justice extract of the Police National ComputerNotes:1) Aged 18 or over at time of sentence.2) Counting the number of female offenders who were convicted in court for the first time.3) Includes crown and magistrates courts cases, where this information is recorded on the PNC.4) 6 months has been assumed to be 180 days.5) Excludes cases where the sentence length is not known6) England and Wales includes all 43 police force areas plus the British Transport Police7) For more detailed information on the offences included in each classification see the Offence Group Classifications file at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-20178) The figures in these tables have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.Number of adult1 male offenders with no previous convictions2 sentenced to immediate custody by court type3, sentence length4,5 and offence type; England and Wales6, 2018Number of OffendersOffence type7Crown Court Magistrates Court Less than 6 months6 months or more Less than 6 months6 months or more Violence against the person159463428 Sexual offences161,4202420Robbery016104Theft Offences1632114123Criminal damage and arson15260Drug offences351,3041440Possession of weapons2815210716Public order offences10117103Miscellaneous crimes against society1248336728Fraud offences13252112Summary offences excluding motoring27226212Summary motoring offences21760All offences2875,561752176 Source: Ministry of Justice extract of the Police National ComputerNotes:1) Aged 18 or over at time of sentence.2) Counting the number of male offenders who were convicted in court for the first time.3) Includes crown and magistrates courts cases, where this information is recorded on the PNC.4) 6 months has been assumed to be 180 days.5) Excludes cases where the sentence length is not known6) England and Wales includes all 43 police force areas plus the British Transport Police7) For more detailed information on the offences included in each classification see the Offence Group Classifications file at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-20178) The figures in these tables have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.There is persuasive evidence showing community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending. The MoJ study ‘The impact of short custodial sentences, community orders and suspended sentence orders on re-offending’ published in 2015 found that over a 1-year follow up period, a higher proportion of people re-offended having been sentenced to custody of under 12 months without supervision on release than other similar people given community orders.Unless we tackle the underlying causes of offending, we cannot protect the public from being victims of crime. Effective community orders can address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and alcohol or drug misuse needs, and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.In the female offender strategy, published June 2018, we set out our vision to see fewer women coming into the criminal justice system, and a greater proportion managed successfully in the community.

HM Courts and Tribunals Service: Welsh Language

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether Welsh language speakers are able to correspond with Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service in England through the medium of the Welsh language.

Paul Maynard: Holding answer received on 22 May 2019



HM Courts and Tribunal’s Service supports the provision of its Welsh Language Scheme as applicable in both Wales and England. HMCTS service centres that provide a national service welcome correspondence in Welsh, which will be dealt with within the same time frame and to the same standards as English language correspondence.

Ministry of Justice: Brexit

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many officials in his Department have been seconded to work in other Government Departments; and in which Department were they seconded to, in each of the last 18 months.

Edward Argar: The information you have requested is not held centrally by the Department at this time.

Taxis: Assistance Animals

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 2 May 2019 to Question 248758, how many people were convicted under sections (a) 168 and (b) 170 of the Equality Act 2010 for refusing to take an assistance dog in a taxi or private hire vehicle in 2018.

Robert Buckland: 3 offenders were found guilty at all courts of refusing to take an assistance dog in a taxi in England and Wales in 2018. 23 offenders were found guilty at all courts of refusing to take an assistance dog in a private hire vehicle in England and Wales in 2018

Legal Aid Scheme

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of applicants were refused legal aid in 2018.

Paul Maynard: In the 2018 calendar year, a total of 20,862 applications for legal aid did not proceed to be granted, for any reason. This represents 4.8% of the total applications made during this period.These figures cover applications for legal representation at either the Magistrates or Crown Court, or for a civil legal aid certificate.

Prisons: Sexual Offences

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many sexual assaults have been committed in prison in each year since 2010.

Robert Buckland: The Government publishes quarterly statistics on assaults in prison, and a more detailed annual breakdown, and both are available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/safety-in-custody-quarterly-update-to-december-2018.Details of sexual assaults can be found in Assaults in prison custody 2000 to 2018 at table 3.9. The Government is taking unprecedented action to improve safety in prisons. We have recruited over 4,700 more prison officers since October 2016, and we now have the greatest number in post since early 2012. The Challenge, Support and Intervention Plan case management process for prisoners at risk of violence has been mandated for all prisons to help staff to manage violent prisoners and those identified as posing a raised risk of being violent. We are committed to reducing violence in prison and we encourage prisoners to report assaults, so that we can take action against perpetrators and support victims. The most important support that we can provide is to ensure that all allegations are taken seriously and investigated thoroughly, and that appropriate action is taken if they are proven. Other support can include: ensuring that there is no contact between alleged perpetrator and victim; increased supervision of the person who reported the assault, to build their sense of security and confidence; and referral to other forms of help such as peer supporters, health staff, and specialist external services.

Prisons: Crimes of Violence

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for the purpose of recording the number of assaults in prison, whether his Department records information on the number of (a) incidents, which could involve multiple people, in which at least one assault takes place or (b) each individual assault by each person involved.

Robert Buckland: Her Majesty's Prison & Probation Service records the number of assault incidents, involving multiple people, in which at least one assault takes place. Where the evidence allows, we also record whether anyone involved is an assailant, a suspected assailant, or a victim. Others may be involved an incident without taking part in the assault, such as prisoners trying to help staff. Where it is not possible clearly to identify an aggressor or a victim, the incident is recorded as a fight and those involved as fighters. Full details of the methods used for collating these data can be found in the ‘Guide to Safety in Custody Statistics’, available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/797079/safety-custody-statistics-guide.pdf

Courts: Staff

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the cumulative number of years of experience held by all courts staff in (a) 2010 and (b) 2018.

Paul Maynard: The cumulative experience of all HMCTS staff was 197,800.2 years in 2018. The earliest held comparable data is from 2012 and shows 165,282.7 years. Variable case loads and the adoption of new technologies play a part in setting HMCTS workforce requirements and, as such, overall experience can be more accurately measured by the average length of service of our staff. This shows an increase in the average length of service from 11.2 in 2012 to 12.5 in 2018.

Probation: Finance

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average expected spend on commissioning for each of the 11 areas under the new probation model is.

Robert Buckland: We have set out our plans for the future of probation services. We are now working out how these plans will be implemented. It is not possible to provide these figures as details of the future commercial framework are not yet finalised.

Prisons: Disclosure of Information

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, at which private prisons have directors shared data on staffing levels with on-site controllers in each of the last three years.

Robert Buckland: As we have previously stated all staffing matters lies with Contractors. There is no requirement in the contracts to agree staffing levels with the Ministry of Justice. The HMPPS Controller at each privately managed prison has regular review meetings with the contractor against a range of indicators that will reflect numbers of staff in post, recruitment, training, sickness, and attrition. Any concerns in relation to these performance indicators including staff numbers are discussed at these meetings. Where action is needed, progress is monitored by the Controller and escalated within HMPPS where appropriate action can be taken in accordance with the contract. Private providers continue to play an important role in the prison estate and I can assure you that performance of all providers is closely monitored and we will not hesitate to take action where standards fall short.

Treasury

Wines: Excise Duties

Neil Coyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of a rise in excise duty on wine sales.

Robert Jenrick: HMRC publishes a Tax Information Impact Note explaining the impact of the change, each time a duty rate is amended. Please refer to the GOV.UK website to find these (or the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/increase-in-alcohol-duty-rates)

Football Pools: Taxation

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the appropriateness of the level of tax on the football pools industry.

Robert Jenrick: Pool Betting Duty raises around £5m in revenue for the Exchequer per annum. Reducing the level of taxation is likely to have a negligible effect on the football pools.

Bingo and Football Pools: Taxation

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the rate of gross profits tax levied on (a) bingo clubs and (b) the Football Pools; and for what reasons there is a difference between the two.

Robert Jenrick: No assessment has been made. The government recognises the significant role that bingo clubs play in bringing local communities together and contributing to British culture. This is why the government decided to reduce the rate of bingo duty to 10%.

Football Pools: Taxation

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an estimate of the revenue that could accrue to the public purse from a redeveloped football pools industry.

Robert Jenrick: No estimate has been made. Pool Betting Duty raises around £5m in revenue for the Exchequer per annum. Reducing the level of taxation would be likely to have at best a limited effect on the football pools. However, it could put revenue at risk, particularly through incentivising switching of products from fixed odds bets to pooled bets.

Mental Health Services: Finance

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to ring-fence funding for mental health services.

Elizabeth Truss: Funding for mental health services will grow as a share of the overall NHS budget over the next five years, and the NHS long-term plan states that this will form “a new ringfenced local investment fund worth at least £2.3 billion a year by 2023/24.” This investment will enable further service expansion, for example new mental health crisis services for people of all ages and more mental health support in schools.

Treasury: Brexit

Mr David Lammy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many officials in his Department have been seconded away from their normal duties to work on the UK's withdrawal from the EU; and what effect that secondment of staff has had on the effectiveness of his Department.

Robert Jenrick: HM Treasury does not hold information centrally on the work staff undertake while out on loan/secondment. We estimate that to search and locate any information held would exceed the appropriate limit, therefore can only be answered at a disproportionate cost. EU Exit is an all-of-government operation. The Department for Exiting the European Union is responsible for overseeing negotiations to leave the EU and establishing the future relationship between the UK and EU. The Department for International Trade works to secure UK and global prosperity by promoting and financing international trade and investment, and championing free trade.  Departments continually review workforce plans, reprioritise and assess changing needs, which includes identification and cessation of non-priority work where appropriate. We have accelerated our plans, and at the same time, the Civil Service as a whole is working to ensure that EU Exit Implementation is carried out to high quality without impacting public service delivery across the whole of government.

Gold and Foreign Exchange Reserves

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the UK’s official reserves are of (a) gold, (b) foreign currency and (c) other assets as at 31 March 2019.

John Glen: As at end March 2019, the market value of the UK’s official reserves was $169.5 billion. This comprised of (a) $12.9 billion gold, (b) $129.5 billion foreign currency reserves and (c) $27.1 billion other assets.

Billing

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on requiring companies using continuous payment authorities to contact customers in advance of the automatic renewal date  to provide the option to cancel.

John Glen: The Payment Services Regulations, which came into force in January 2018, regulate how Continuous Payment Authorities, or CPAs, are established, and the rights and obligations of payers, payees and payment service providers. In its published guidance on the regulations, the FCA states that consumers have the absolute right to cancel CPAs at any time before the end of the business day before a payment is due to be made, and to obtain an immediate refund from their payment service provider if any future payments are debited from their account after they have revoked their consent. The Chancellor of the Exchequer has not received representations regarding companies using continuous payment authorities. In the Consumer Green Paper, ‘Modernising Consumer Markets’ published by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy last year, the Government announced that it had asked the Consumer Protection Partnership to assess the issues with subscriptions and to recommend any further actions needed. The Government is considering the advice received and will publish a White Paper later this year.

London Capital and Finance

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the directions, as listed under section 78(5) of the Financial Services Act 2012, which the Treasury has given to the Financial Conduct Authority for its inquiry into London Capital & Finance.

John Glen: I have today laid a Direction before Parliament requiring the Financial Conduct Authority to carry out an independent investigation into the events and circumstances surrounding the failure of London Capital and Finance.

London Capital and Finance

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department taking in relation to unregulated mini-bonds following the collapse of London Capital & Finance.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with representatives of the (a) Financial Conduct Authority and (b) Financial Services Compensation Scheme to ensure that investors in mini-bonds such have adequate information on the risks of such schemes before investing following the collapse of London Capital & Finance.

John Glen: On 1 April, the Government announced it will direct the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to launch an investigation into the events and circumstances surrounding the failure and placing into administration of London Capital and Finance plc (LCF). This followed a request from the FCA Chair, Charles Randell, to launch such an investigation. On 23 May 2019, the Government laid a direction before Parliament setting out the terms of the investigation. Alongside this, the Government announced it will separately review the wider policy questions raised by this case. Although operationally independent, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) and the FCA are both accountable to HM Treasury and to Parliament. My officials and I engage with the FCA and FSCS on an ongoing basis, and HM Treasury continues to work with the relevant bodies on the failure of LCF as a matter of priority. The FSCS is also continuing work to increase awareness and understanding of FSCS protection.

Offshore Industry: Taxation

Hilary Benn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the total income received by the Government from north sea oil and gas was in each of the last five years.

Robert Jenrick: The total income received by the Government from North Sea oil and gas for each of the last five years is available on GOV.UK. It can be found in HMRC’s ‘March 2019 Tax NIC Receipts’ publication in the table entitled HM Revenue and Customs receipts.https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/hmrc-tax-and-nics-receipts-for-the-uk

Credit Cards: Fees and Charges

Jim Shannon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to tackle excessive credit card charges.

John Glen: On 1 April 2014, regulation of the consumer credit market was transferred to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The government has given the FCA strong powers to protect consumers and to take action against firms and individuals that do not meet its standards. The FCA conducted an extensive study of the credit card market from 2014-2016. In its final report, the FCA said that competition is working well for the majority of consumers, but expressed concerns about the scale, extent, and nature of problem credit card debt. The FCA then announced a package of remedies in February 2018, including: giving customers more control over credit limits; encouraging customers to repay more quickly; earlier identification of customers at risk of financial difficulty; and, help for customers in persistent debt, with escalating measures at 18, 28, and 36 months. The government welcomes the FCA’s remedies to tackle persistent debt in the credit card market, and will continue to work closely with the FCA to ensure all customers are treated fairly.

Public Health: Finance

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to support the Government’s cross-departmental commitment to prioritising a public health approach in the forthcoming Spending Review, and whether that support will include allocating funding for evidence-based parenting support.

Elizabeth Truss: Decisions on public spending will be made in the round as part of the Spending Review process. As such, we will be working closely with other departments to assess public health priorities and ensure a joined-up approach across government.

Tobacco: EU Law

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 12 April 2019 to Question 241464, what opportunity for appeal exists for economic operators in the event that the compensation offered by tobacco manufacturers for the equipment and software for the recording and transmission of product movement and transactional events to the data storage systems (Article 15(7) of TPD2014/40/EU) does not cover the cost to that operator of implementing the Tobacco Products (Traceability and Security Features) Regulations 2019.

Robert Jenrick: Tobacco manufacturers have introduced a compensation scheme and appointed a third party provider to act as a single point of contact (SPoC) for all compensation claims. The SPoC appointed by the tobacco manufactures for the EU is Société Générale de Surveillance SA (SGS). If an economic operator is not happy with the level of compensation offered, they can appeal to SGS.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Buildings: Insulation

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, which local authorities have received funding to remediate aluminium composite material cladding; and how much funding each local authority has received.

Kit Malthouse: To date, MHCLG has approved £136.4 million of funding to 14 local authority building owners.The table below shows total approved costs to local authorities. Due to public safety considerations, four local authorities have not been specifically named as this could lead to the disclosure of individual buildings. Local AuthorityApproved FundingBarnet£5mCamden£80.6mIslington£4.6mLambeth£2.5mNewham£3.6mPortsmouth£1.2mSandwell£1mSheffield£3.9mWandsworth£16.5mWestminster£6.7mOther (4 Local Authorities)£11mTotal Approved Costs £136.4m

Antisemitism

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons why there has been an increase in hate crimes towards the Jewish community.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Government is determined to confront hate crime wherever it occurs. Police recorded religiously motivated hate crime has increased in recent years despite a backdrop of a longer-term downward trend in the experience of hate crime overall, according to the Crime Survey of England and Wales. We know that there have been trigger events for increases in hate crime, such as the EU Referendum and the terror attacks in 2017, though data shows that these have been temporary. A significant driver for this overall increase is general improvements in police recording, and through our work with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and third party services such as the Community Security Trust, police are better at identifying whether a crime is a hate crime and victims may be more willing to come forward.The Government has a comprehensive plan to tackle hate crime in all its forms, as set out in the refreshed Hate Crime Action Plan published in October 2018, which sets out a programme of work across Government and by the police.

Housing: East Midlands

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many homes are planned to be built on public land in the East Midlands under the Public Land for Housing Programme 2015-20 by 2020.

Kit Malthouse: As of March 2018, there are around 1,800 homes planned to be built in the East Midlands which have been released under the Public Land for Housing Programme 2015-20. Departments are looking to dispose of land in all regions of England by March 2020.

Buildings: Insulation

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, upon which expert authority the Permanent Secretary to his Department wrote to local authority chief executives and housing association chief executives on 22 June 2017 stating that Aluminium Composite Material should be considered as filler as referred to in paragraph 12.7 of Approved Document Part B Volume 2 of 2013.

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he could clarify upon which expert authority the Permanent Secretary to his Department wrote to local authority chief executives and housing association chief executives on 22 June 2017 stating that Paragraph 12.7 of Approved Document Part B Volume 2 of 2013 does not just apply to thermal insulation within the external wall construction, but applies to any element of the cladding system, including, therefore, the core of the Aluminium Composite Material cladding.

Kit Malthouse: Holding answer received on 22 May 2019



The Permanent Secretary’s letter of 22 June 2017 set out the Department’s view of the guidance in section 12 of Volume 2 of Approved Document B.

Buildings: Insulation

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the (a) individuals and (b) organisations that attended the large-scale tests conducted on systems containing Aluminium Composite Material cladding that took place in the summer 2017.

Kit Malthouse: Holding answer received on 22 May 2019



The information that the Department holds on these tests shows that representatives of the following organisations observed one or more of the large-scale tests undertaken in the summer 2017:Building Research Establishment Ltd (BRE);Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government (MHCLG);Exova (UK) ltd;HM Chief Insp. of the Fire Service (Scotland);CSTodd and Associates ltd;Edinburgh University;The Department’s Independent Expert advisory Panel;National Fire Chief Council (NFCC);Institute of Fire Engineer (IFE);Scottish Building Standards;Mineral Wool Insulation Manufacturers Association (MIMA);British Rigid Urethane Foam Manufacturers' Association (BRUFMA);Booth Muirie ltd;Siderise ltd; andUnited Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS); Under the Data Protection Act 2018 the Department would not normally disclose personal information about individuals.

Buildings: Insulation

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether any determinations and appeals were made prior to 14 June 2017 under the Building Act 1984 on the meaning of filler material as the term is to be understood in the Government guidance entitled Fire safety: Approved Document Part B Volume 2, published in 2006, 2010, 2013, paragraph 12.7.

Kit Malthouse: The Department did not make any determinations or decide any appeals on the meaning of the term filler material prior to 14 June 2017.

Homelessness: Young People

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on providing more long-term funding to tackle youth homelessness; and what steps he is taking to ensure all public services are engaged in preventing youth homelessness.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Government is committed to reducing homelessness and rough sleeping. No one should ever have to sleep rough. That is why last summer we published the cross-government Rough Sleeping Strategy. This set out an ambitious £100 million package to help people who sleep rough now, but also puts in place the structures that will end rough sleeping once and for all. The Government has now committed over £1.2 billion to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping over the current spending review period. In 2018/19, £30 million in Rough Sleeping Initiative (RSI) funding provided 1,750 additional bed spaces and 500 rough sleeping support staff. Government support is expanding as we move into 2019/20, with £46 million for the RSI including £12 million to new areas. We expect this to deliver an additional 750 staff and 2,600 bed spaces this year.We are currently making preparations across Government to prepare for the forthcoming Spending Review, which includes specific work on Youth Homelessness. In addition, the Homelessness Reduction Act, the most ambitious reform to homelessness legislation in decades, has pledged a duty to refer on public services to refer those who are, or at risk of, homelessness to local authorities. The Homelessness Advice and Support Team supports implementation of the Homelessness Reduction Act and includes specific youth advisers to work closely with local authorities on issues around Youth Homelessness.

Ministry of Defence

Royal Military Police: Lambeth

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many hours the Ministry of Defence Royal Military Police Centre on Upper Tulse Hill SW2 2RS is used per week.

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many cadets regularly use the Ministry of Defence Royal Military Police Centre on Upper Tulse Hill SW2 2RS; and how many cadets have passed through that facility.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: A Royal Military Police Company, Cadet detachment, and associated Cadet headquarters are based at the site. Currently, 77 cadets attend eight hours of training there each week. An additional 388 cadets have passed through the facility between 5 December 2006 and 24 January 2019.When there is spare capacity, the site is used for training by other Government Departments and for wider defence purposes.

Saudi Arabia: Military Aid

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many UK (a) soldiers and (b) contracted staff work to support air radar systems in Saudi Arabia in the latest period for which figures are available.

Stuart Andrew: No UK soldiers work to support air radar systems in Saudi Arabia. There are today around 50 UK-contracted personnel providing routine technical support for the avionics systems on UK-supplied aircraft, including the air radar systems.

Nuclear Weapons: Testing

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what tests her Department has carried out on (a) blood and (b) urine samples taken from people who served at UK nuclear tests between 1952 and 1991.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Pursuant to the Answer I gave the hon. Member on 1 April 2019 to Question 237633, to ascertain what blood and urine tests may have been undertaken, the information sought would require the individual medical record of each of the personnel present at the UK nuclear tests to be located and reviewed. These records are not held centrally and to provide the information could only be done at disproportionate cost.

Nuclear Weapons: Testing

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if she will release all F Med 12 and F Med 29 forms that were completed during the UK's nuclear weapons testing programme for analysis by the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: For reasons of medical confidentiality and data protection, disclosing individuals' medical records to third parties requires the explicit consent of each data subject. The Ministry of Defence will consider all such requests on a case by case basis.Where the data subject is deceased relatives can request their healthcare records, albeit there is no automatic right to access. Patient confidentiality can be over-ridden and records released if there is a legal claim as a result of the death. Again, each such request would be considered on a case by case basis.

Nuclear Weapons: Testing

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what records her Department holds on the civilian (a) women and (b) children who travelled to Christmas Island on troop ship Dunera in 1958.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: A review of archived files held by the Ministry of Defence is being undertaken. This will take some time and I will write to the hon. Member once this has concluded.

Nuclear Weapons: Testing

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what records her Department holds on military equipment contaminated by radiation during (a) UK and (b) US nuclear tests; and (i) where and (ii) how that equipment was disposed of.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Information on UK military equipment that may have been contaminated by UK or US nuclear tests or how it was subsequently disposed is not held centrally. To search all the Department's historic records that may contain this information could only be done at disproportionate cost.

Republic of Ireland: Military Alliances

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to increase defence and security co-operation with the Republic of Ireland.

Mark Lancaster: Levels of co-operation with the Republic of Ireland have developed significantly since the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Defence and Security Co-operation in 2015. This is underpinned by an action plan which provides a framework to enhance our bilateral defence and security relationship in a number of key areas, including increased training opportunities, cyber defence, maritime and air security, and information-sharing. Opportunities for further bilateral co-operation are reviewed through regular consultations at both the policy and military level.

Shipbuilding

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of the recommendations made in the report entitled, National Ship Building Strategy, published by the All Party Parliamentary Group for Shipbuilding and Ship Repair in May 2019.

Stuart Andrew: I thank the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Shipbuilding and Ship Repair for their work in completing this report.The Ministry of Defence is not required to make a formal assessment of the recommendations in the report, but as per my oral contribution on 20 May 2019 (Official Report column 494) I would be happy to meet the APPG to discuss their report.

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has set targets for the performance of personal independence payment assessors.

Justin Tomlinson: I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided by my predecessor to Written Question 182085.

Personal Independence Payment

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants of personal independence payment have had their payments stopped as a result of employment.

Justin Tomlinson: Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is designed to help people with long-term health conditions or disabilities to lead full, active, and independent lives. PIP awards are determined on the basis of the needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability and are paid irrespective of employment status, therefore payments do not stop simply because someone has become employed.

State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimates he has made of the potential cost to the public purse of uprating state pensions for pensioners who live overseas.

Guy Opperman: All political parties since WW2 have the same policy. Up-rating UK State Pensions for recipients who are overseas residents is longstanding; state Pensions are payable worldwide and are up-rated where there is a legal requirement to do so. The policy on the up-rating of UK State Pensions paid to recipients living outside the UK has been in place for over 70 years. The UK State Pension is payable worldwide without regard to nationality. Entitlement to the UK State Pension is based on the national insurance contributions on a person’s national insurance record. The annual index-linked increases to UK State Pensions are paid to recipients overseas only where there is a legal requirement to do so, for example in EEA countries or in countries where there is a reciprocal agreement in place that provides for the up-rating of the UK State Pension. The Government has no plans to change the policy of all Governments, Labour, Coalition or Conservative since WW2. The estimated costs of up-rating state pensions overseas where they are currently not up-rated are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/estimated-costs-of-uprating-state-pension-in-frozen-rate-countries

Universal Credit

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 13 May to Question 249845, what proportion of universal credit claimants who had not fully repaid their advance as of 5 May 2019 had taken out that advance prior to 5 November 2018.

Alok Sharma: The latest available data shows there were 610,000 claimants who had not fully repaid a Universal Credit Advance which had been taken out prior to 5 November 2018. This equates to around 40% of the total claimants with a Universal Credit Advance. Notes:Data is a snapshot of information held on 15 May 2019 and has been rounded to the nearest ten thousand.Many Universal Credit advances are taken out over a 12-month repayment period, so this snapshot of data includes cases where repayments are being made to the agreed timeline.This data has been sourced from internal management information and due to the time available, has not been quality assured to the usual standards for public release. It should therefore not be compared to any other similar data subsequently released by the Department.

Occupational Pensions

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to bring forward legislative proposals for the introduction of collective defined contribution schemes.

Guy Opperman: This Government has recently published a response to a Collective Defined Contribution schemes consultation, and have engaged extensively with key stakeholders. In this response we have committed to facilitate Collective Defined Contribution schemes and have stated that the Government will bring forward Primary legislation as soon as parliamentary time allows. The response can be viewed here:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/789051/response-delivering-collective-defined-contribution-pension-schemes.pdf

Independent Assessment Services

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to audits requiring amendments to be made to Independent Assessment Service health assessment reports, in what circumstances are such amendments not made by the health professional who conducted the assessment.

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of Independent Assessment Service health assessment reports that have been amended during audit by a health professional that (a) conducted the health assessment and (b) did not conduct the health assessment for all years for which information is available.

Justin Tomlinson: Data is not specifically collated on the number of reports that have been amended by the Health Professional that conducted the health assessment or those that had not. Where Independent Assessment Service reports require amendment via audit then this activity, wherever possible, should be taken by the Health Professional who carried out the original assessment. Exceptions to this may be as a result of the Health Professional’s availability for example, annual leave which would cause an unnecessary delay to the assessment process.

Independent Assessment Services

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the minimum training requirements are for auditors of Independent Assessment Service health assessment reports.

Justin Tomlinson: Auditors of Independent Assessment Services health assessment reports are qualified health professionals who are registered with a professional body, with experience in PIP assessments.

Independent Assessment Services

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many audited Independent Assessment Service health assessment reports were graded as (a) acceptable, (b) unacceptable and (c) acceptable report amendment required in each year for which figures are available.

Justin Tomlinson: Please find the figures requested in the table below. In addition to this information we have also included the category ‘acceptable with feedback’ which was not requested but may be of interest. GradesApr 16- Mar 17Apr 17-Mar 18Apr 18-Mar 19Acceptable7,3007,9307,480Acceptable with Feedback1,3801,8201,990Acceptable with Amendments6501,2201,780Unacceptable460620500Total Audited9,79011,59011,750Figures rounded to the nearest 10Data obtained from the CHES MI Team

Independent Assessment Services

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure Independent Assessment Service assessment centres accommodate the needs of people with autistic spectrum conditions.

Justin Tomlinson: All Independent Assessment Services (IAS) centres meet the department’s required accessibility requirements. In addition, IAS have plans in place to use their claimant champion stakeholder network to work with autism groups to improve the experience in centres for claimants with autistic spectrum conditions. IAS PIP claimant communications were reviewed by the National Autistic Society with feedback being received that map/directions which include exterior centre photos were particularly helpful for autistic claimants to allow them to orientate before arriving.

Children: Maintenance

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she has taken to ensure child maintenance payments are made on time by employers.

Will Quince: A welcome pack is issued to each new employer which is followed up with a telephone call to a specific person in payroll to check they understand the Deductions from Earnings Order (DEO) process and the employers obligation, to deduct payments on time from employee salary. Each month thereafter, a target schedule is sent to the employer’s payroll department. For existing employers a target schedule is also sent and a phone call will have taken place when we initially requested deductions to be taken. If employers don’t make the payment to CMS on time we will call that employer 5 working days after the missed payment to investigate late payment and re-iterate their obligations to CMS. Where employers repeatedly fail to send payments, we will work with them to understand what we need to do in order to reach compliance. At this point we also work alongside our Financial Investigations Unit, where we might consider a face to face visit to the employer is appropriate. This will take place with trained investigators, who will also remind employers of their legal obligation to deduct and pass on child maintenance payments.

Children: Maintenance

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support is provided to parents who do not receive child maintenance payments on time.

Will Quince: It is a key principle that unpaid child maintenance should be paid immediately. Where a non-resident parent fails to pay on time or in full, we aim to take immediate action to recover the unpaid maintenance and re-establish compliance. Where compliance is not achieved and the non-resident parent is employed we will attempt to deduct their maintenance (and/or any arrears) direct from their earnings via a deduction from earnings order. Employers are obliged by law to take this action for us. We have a range of other strong enforcement powers, including deducting child maintenance directly from bank accounts, using Enforcement Agents to take control of goods, forcing the sale of property, disqualification from driving or commitment to prison as well as restrictions on applying for and holding a passport. As part of our new Compliance and Arrears Strategy we have further strengthened our collection and enforcement powers to enable us to deduct child maintenance from a wider range of bank accounts and enable us to apply to the court for an order to disqualify a parent with child maintenance arrears from holding or obtaining a UK passport.

Social Security Benefits: Disability

Jamie Stone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of claimants have had their mobility payments (a) reduced and (b) stopped when transferring from disability living allowance to personal independence payment.

Jamie Stone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many former disability living allowance claimants living in the Highland local authority area receive (a) a reduced or (b) no mobility element under personal independence payment.

Jamie Stone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many former disability living allowance claimants living in Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross receive (a) a reduced mobility element or (b) a zero mobility element as a result of moving to personal independence payment.

Justin Tomlinson: The table below shows the number and proportion of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) claimants who were in receipt of the DLA mobility component and whom on reassessment to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) received (a) a reduced mobility element or (b) a zero mobility element at the first DWP decision. Figures are prior to any mandatory reconsideration, appeal or award review. Mobility award under PIP compared to mobility award under DLA for those who were in receipt of the mobility component on DLAGBHighland Local AuthorityCaithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross(a) Reduced Mobility144,350 (13%)680 (14%)180 (14%)(b) Mobility stopped430,730 (39%)1,690 (34%)420 (31%)(c) Mobility the same407,290 (37%)1,980 (40%)560 (42%)(d) Increased mobility128,410 (12%)630 (13%)180 (14%)Total number who were in receipt of DLA mobility1,110,7704,9701,340  Notes:Data excludes claimants who did not previously receive a mobility component on DLA.PIP mobility award shows the mobility award at the first DWP decision on each reassessment claim (i.e. they reflect outcomes prior to any reconsideration, appeal action and award review), where that decision was made between 8th April 2013 and 31st October 2018.“Mobility stopped” includes claims disallowed prior to assessment, claims disallowed post-assessment and claims withdrawn by the claimant as well as claimants who were awarded PIP Daily Living but received no PIP Mobility award component.Figures exclude rising 16s and claimants who did not respond to the invitation. Rising 16s are claimants who reach 16 years of age and so cease to be eligible for DLA but may be eligible for PIP.Figures include reassessment outcomes for individuals who were aged between 16 and 64 on 8th April 2013, and include both PIP Normal Rules and Special Rules for the Terminally Ill claims.Totals have been rounded to the nearest 10 and may not sum due to rounding.Percentages are calculated using actual figures rather than rounded figures and have been rounded to the nearest 1%.This is unpublished data. It should be used with caution and it may be subject to future revision.

Pensioners: Fuel Poverty

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of pensioners who forewent heating as a result of a lack of funds in the last four months of 2018.

Guy Opperman: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy administers the warm home discount scheme which provides assistance to around 2 million low income and vulnerable households (including 1.21m pensioners) with their energy costs. Further details can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/the-warm-home-discount-schemeIn 2018/19 the DWP is estimated to have spent £122bn on pensioner benefits which included £2bn on winter fuel payments to 12 million pensioners, the majority of whom received their payment before Christmas 2018. In addition, the DWP also administers the cold weather payment scheme. For the period from the 1 November 2018 to the 31 March 2019, we estimate 438,000 payments were made to Pension Credit customers. Further details about the cold weather payment scheme can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/cold-weather-payment The DWP does not hold the specific information requested.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Village Halls: Repairs and Maintenance

Alec Shelbrooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will ensure that grants from the village hall improvement grant fund are able to be allocated to (a) Collingham Memorial Hall and (b) other halls where refurbishment is already underway and due for completion in time to commemorate the centenary of their opening in 2020.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government announced the establishment of the £3 million Village Hall Improvement Grant Fund on 5 April this year. It will be administered by Action with Communities in Rural England (ACRE) on behalf of Defra and work is currently in hand to finalise arrangements. Halls can already make an expression of interest in the scheme through ACRE’s website and we understand that the trustees of Collingham Memorial Hall have already done so. It is not possible to guarantee funds for any particular hall. We hope that the first grants will be awarded in late summer.

Barbecues

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the (a) level of and (b) type of toxins released as a result of domestic barbecues as part of his Department's consultation on cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood in England; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The consultation on cleaner domestic burning of solid fuels and wood relates to indoor burning only, and does not refer to barbecues. We have therefore not completed a comparative assessment of the level of and type of toxins released as a result of domestic barbecues.

Canoeing

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 3 May 2019 to Question 247567 on Canoeists, what recent voluntary agreements between landowners, canoeists and those wishing to use the water for recreational purposes have been concluded in the last three years, and if he will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: This information is not held by the Department.

Environment Protection

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to introduce the Environment Bill; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Environment Bill will be introduced early in the second Session of this Parliament.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Secondment

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2019 to Question 237159 on Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Secondment, how many staff have been seconded to his Department from the Environment Agency (a) since June 2016, (b) in the last 12 months and (c) in the last month.

David Rutley: The information provided is taken as at 30 April 2019. YearNumber of Secondments from EAOf which are still working in the department* a) June 2016 – All secondments from EA to Defra from June 2016 to April 2019.7412b) Last 12 Months – Those whose secondments started between May 2018 and April 2019. These are included in the number above.7Less than 5c) April 2019 – Those whose secondments started in April 2019. These are included in both figures above.00 *These are the number of staff whose secondments have not yet come to an end, and are therefore still working in Defra. Those whose secondments have come to an end will have returned to the Environment Agency. Secondments usually last for two years, however we would expect there to be some variation in length dependant on business needs. We have chosen to withhold the information relating to the number of staff still in the department whose secondments started in the last 12 months in line with GDPR regulations, as it relates to less than 5 members of staff and therefore there is a risk they may be identified.

Fly-tipping

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on (a) ensuring adequate support for local authorities to tackle fly-tipping and (b) ensuring that persistent offenders are either fined or prosecuted.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 23 May 2019.The correct answer should have been:

Local authorities have a wide range of enforcement powers to tackle fly-tipping and we have recently strengthened these. In 2016 we gave local authorities the power to issue fixed penalty notices for small scale fly-tipping and enhanced local authorities’ ability to search and seize the vehicles of suspected fly-tippers. In January this year, we introduced further financial penalties to crack down on fly-tipping giving local authorities the power to issue penalties of up to £400 to householders who fail to pass their waste to a licensed carrier and whose waste is then found fly-tipped. We will also support local authorities in increasing householders’ awareness of their duty of care to ensure their waste is disposed of appropriately. In our Resources and Waste Strategy for England, we have included committed to develop a fly-tipping toolkit which will cover how local authorities can set up and run an effective fly-tipping partnership and how to present robust cases to court to ensure tougher penalties. The Strategy also sets out how we will work with the court system to further strengthen the sentences of fly-tippers to ensure they act as a suitable deterrent.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Local authorities have a wide range of enforcement powers to tackle fly-tipping and we have recently strengthened these. In 2016 we gave local authorities the power to issue fixed penalty notices for small scale fly-tipping and enhanced local authorities’ ability to search and seize the vehicles of suspected fly-tippers. In January this year, we introduced further financial penalties to crack down on fly-tipping giving local authorities the power to issue penalties of up to £400 to householders who fail to pass their waste to a licensed carrier and whose waste is then found fly-tipped. We will also support local authorities in increasing householders’ awareness of their duty of care to ensure their waste is disposed of appropriately. In our Resources and Waste Strategy for England, we have included committed to develop a fly-tipping toolkit which will cover how local authorities can set up and run an effective fly-tipping partnership and how to present robust cases to court to ensure tougher penalties. The Strategy also sets out how we will work with the court system to further strengthen the sentences of fly-tippers to ensure they act as a suitable deterrent.

Horses: Animal Welfare

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure horse owners comply with his Department's tethering guidelines.

David Rutley: Following representations from some equine bodies, I will be meeting a number of groups, including the British Horse Council who coordinate the views of the sector, to discuss the issue of tethering. Information on how to tether a horse is contained within the statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Horses, Ponies, Donkeys and Their Hybrids, which sets out guidance to keepers on how to provide for the welfare needs of their equidae, as required by the Animal Welfare Act 2006. The RSPCA, World Horse Welfare and local authority inspectors carry copies of the Code of Practice with them when called out to investigate complaints about the welfare of horses. They inform owners, by referring to the relevant part of the code, how to care for their animals including in relation to tethering.

Agriculture: Finance

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish the (a) names and (b) locations by region of each of the Environmental Land Management Scheme pilots.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Environmental Land Management (ELM) pilot is planned to run for three years starting from late 2021 and will cover the whole of England. The first tests and trails, informing different elements of ELM, should start shortly and the proposals ELM have received to date are spread across the whole of England.

Dogs: Smuggling

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to tackle the unlawful smuggling of dogs and puppies.

David Rutley: Defra takes the issue of the smuggling of dogs and puppies seriously. It is an abhorrent trade which causes suffering to the smuggled dogs and puts the health of pets and people in the UK at risk. We are working hard to tackle the problem, targeting both the supply and demand of illegally imported dogs. This approach includes enforcement through increased resourcing and partnership working at ports, international engagement, and sales and licensing. We are also helping the public to understand how they can responsibly buy or adopt a dog.

Peat

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of continued use of peat from UK peat bogs on environmental degradation.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government has plans to reduce the volume of peat used from UK peat bogs.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to promote the use of green alternatives to peat.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only, unless otherwise stated. Emissions of greenhouse gases from peat extraction in the UK in 2017, were an estimated 337,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents. Commercial extraction in England is licenced on approximately 664 hectares of peatland, across 29 sites. The National Planning Policy Framework, first published in 2012, ends the granting of new licences for peat extraction. Therefore, peat extraction in England will end when the remaining licences come to an end. We are also continuing to focus on reducing demand for peat in horticulture in England. This not only protects UK peat bogs, but recognises that two thirds of the peat sold in the UK is imported from the rest of Europe. In the 25 Year Plan for the Environment we signalled to the industry that if we have not seen sufficient movement to peat alternatives by 2020, then we would take further measures. We are discussing what these potential further measures could look like. The Government is also working with the industry to make the transition to peat alternatives, and to overcome the barriers to their use. For example, we are jointly funding research with the industry to overcome barriers to peat replacement in professional horticulture. We have also worked with the industry to develop a Responsible Sourcing Scheme for Growing Media, which allows manufacturers and retailers to make informed choices of growing media inputs to amateur/retail products, based on environmental and social impacts.

Peat

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the amount of CO2 produced by processing and removing peat produce from UK peat bogs in 2018.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The last assessment of CO2 emissions from peat extraction in the UK is for 2017. An estimated 337,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents were emitted from peat extraction. This is made up of on-site emissions from the decomposition of drained peat in situ, and off-site emissions from the decomposition of the removed peat. The emissions from the use of energy for the processing and removal of peat is not available.

Air Pollution

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the effect of air pollution on public health.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Secretary of State has regular meetings with his counterpart at the Department for Health and Social Care and they discuss air pollution and public health most weeks.

Balloons and Sky Lanterns

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential risks of (a) helium balloon and (b) sky lantern releases; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: An independent study commissioned by Defra and the Welsh Government published in 2013 suggested that while anecdotal reports and media coverage could imply that there is widespread concern from farming groups and others over the impacts of sky lanterns and helium balloons on the health and welfare of livestock, the evidence presented indicated that the number of cases reported each year of animals affected through ingestion of sky lantern and helium balloon debris is very small in the context of the wider livestock population.. The Government has no plans for policy changes regarding the release of sky lanterns or helium balloons or to commission an update of the 2013 Report.

Birds: Animal Welfare

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of banning the practice of caging agricultural birds; and if he will make a statement.

David Rutley: The Government shares the public’s high regard for animal welfare and the welfare of our farmed livestock in all systems is protected by comprehensive and robust legislation. This is backed up by statutory species specific welfare codes, which encourage high standards of husbandry and which keepers are required by law to have access to and be familiar with. Defra’s Animal and Plant Health Agency inspectors and local authorities conduct inspections on farms to check that the animal welfare standards are being met. Whatever the system of production, the most important factor in determining animal welfare is good stockmanship and the correct application of husbandry standards. This reflects the advice of the Farm Animal Welfare Committee. We have already banned cages or close confinement systems where there is clear scientific evidence that they are detrimental to animal health and welfare. For example, we banned the use of conventional (‘battery’) cages for laying hens in 2012. The new statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Laying Hens and Pullets, which came into force last year, provides improved and up-to-date guidance on welfare legislation and reflects the latest scientific and veterinary advice. I am aware that all major supermarkets have said they will stop selling eggs from hens kept in enriched cages by 2025.

Birds and Eggs: Theft

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to tackle the theft of (a) wild birds and (b) wild bird eggs in the UK.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government takes wildlife crime, including the illegal taking of wild birds and their eggs, seriously. All wild birds are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which provides a powerful framework for the conservation of wild birds, their eggs, nests and habitats. There are strong penalties for offenders, including imprisonment.

Home Office

Civil Partnerships Proceedings

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the level of registrar preparedness to perform civil partnerships for opposite sex couples from December 2019.

Caroline Nokes: Registration authorities have been responsible for the formation of civil partnerships for same sex couples since the legislation was implemented in 2005.Extending eligibility to opposite sex couples will not introduce any new processes for registration authorities so training requirements will be minimal and appropriate guidance will be issued in time for implementation.

Civil Partnerships Proceedings

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance has been issued to registrars on taking bookings for civil partnerships for opposite sex couples from December 31 2019 in advance of the introduction of regulations.

Caroline Nokes: The Registrar General for England and Wales has issued guidance to registration authorities on taking bookings for the formation of civil partnerships for opposite sex couples in line with the implementation date in the Civil Partnerships, Marriages and Deaths(Registration Etc) Act 2019.

Deportation: Afghanistan

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential risks facing people who have been deported from the UK to Afghanistan.

Caroline Nokes: Our assessment of the situation in Afghanistan for those returning from the UK is made against the background of the latest available country of origin information and any relevant caselaw. This is based on evidence taken from a range of reliable sources, including but not necessarily limited to: reputable media outlets; local, national and international organisations, including human rights organisations; and information from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.Our assessments, in the form of Country Policy and Information Notes, are published on the Gov.uk website. These are kept under constant review and are updated periodically.

Immigrants: Detainees

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of the number of survivors of torture detained in the UK for immigration purposes.

Caroline Nokes: Rule 35(3) of the Detention Centre Rules 2001 is the primary method by which the Home Office is informed that an individual within immigration detention may be a victim of torture.The number of Rule 35 reports raised under the Detention Centre Rules is published quarterly in Immigration Enforcement Transparency data. The latest publication can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-enforcement-data-november-2018.

North Wales Police: Expenditure

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 20 May 2019 to Question 254750, how much and what proportion of core grant funding for territorial police forces was allocated to North Wales Police in each of the last four years.

Mr Nick Hurd: The 2019/20 police funding settlement provides the biggest increase in police funding since 2010, with more money for local police forces, counter terrorism and tackling serious and organised crime.Total funding is increasing by over £1 billion in 2019/20, including council tax, extra funding for pensions costs, and the serious violence fund.Each Police and Crime Commissioner receives the same percentage change in core grant funding each year.Core grant funding figures are published each year in the annual police funding settlement: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-financeFigures for the years 2015/16 to 2018/19 are also published in a statistics publication on police funding here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-funding-for-england-and-wales-2015-to-2019The North Wales Police and Crime Commissioner’s (PCC) total funding is £155.8 million in 2019/20, an increase of £9.4 million compared to 2018/19.

Home Office: Termination of Employment

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of asylum decision makers left their jobs within the first 12 months of employment in Asylum Operations Offices in (a) Bootle, (b) Croydon, (c) Leeds, (d) Liverpool, (e) Newcastle and (f) Solihull in each of the last three years.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office is unable to report how many and what proportion of asylum decision makers left their jobs within the first 12 months of employment, to obtain this information would require a manual trawl of staffing records and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.The Home Office can provide the total headcount of decision makers that left Asylum Operations Offices in (a) Bootle, (b) Croydon, (c) Leeds, (d) Liverpool, (e) Newcastle and (f) Solihull over the past three years.This is broken down in the table below:YearBootle*Croydon**LeedsLiverpoolNewcastleSolihullTotalApr 16-Mar 17N/a39161112794Apr 17-Mar 183350830223146Apr 18-Mar 197139131518147Total1041283756458387 *Bootle established April 2017** Croydon – includes Third Country Unit (TCU) Decision Makers however TCU was not included in decision makers data in 2016

Cabinet Office

Government Departments: Land

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the National Audit Office's 2 May 2019 report entitled Investigation into the Government’s land disposal strategy and programmes, if he will publish the 176 sites that were disposed of for £1 or less from the government estate.

Oliver Dowden: The National Audit Office investigation into the government's land disposal strategy and programmes referenced 176 sites which were sold since 2015 for £1 or less. Details of each of these sites are already published on GOV.UK in annual Transparency Reports listing all Government land sales. The April 2018 publication reports on sales in 2015/16 and 2016/17. The January 2019 publication reports on sales in 2017/18. The common reasons for sales at £1 or less are:sites where costs of remediation (for example, decontamination) are involved;sites which are narrow strips of land that have no other use or value; andthe sale of a lease which contains a clause allowing the purchaser to buy the freehold for £1 after a set period or once certain conditions have been metOf the 176 sites disposed of for £1 or less, 160 were owned by Homes England. Homes England inherited a number of sites from predecessor organisations which were not viable for development. Disposing of these is helping to reduce the liability of holding costs for Government.Departments disposing of surplus land must do so in line with Managing Public Money and wider disposals guidance. They should get a Market Valuation, and are restricted from selling at lower value than a site is worth.

Government Departments: Land

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the National Audit Office's 2 May 2019 report entitled Investigation into the government’s land disposal strategy and programmes, for what reasons 176 sites from the government estate were disposed of for £1 or less.

Oliver Dowden: The National Audit Office investigation into the government's land disposal strategy and programmes referenced 176 sites which were sold since 2015 for £1 or less. Details of each of these sites are already published on GOV.UK in annual Transparency Reports listing all Government land sales. The April 2018 publication reports on sales in 2015/16 and 2016/17. The January 2019 publication reports on sales in 2017/18. The common reasons for sales at £1 or less are:sites where costs of remediation (for example, decontamination) are involved;sites which are narrow strips of land that have no other use or value; andthe sale of a lease which contains a clause allowing the purchaser to buy the freehold for £1 after a set period or once certain conditions have been metOf the 176 sites disposed of for £1 or less, 160 were owned by Homes England. Homes England inherited a number of sites from predecessor organisations which were not viable for development. Disposing of these is helping to reduce the liability of holding costs for Government.Departments disposing of surplus land must do so in line with Managing Public Money and wider disposals guidance. They should get a Market Valuation, and are restricted from selling at lower value than a site is worth.

Cybercrime: Public Appointments

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment his Department made of the viability of appointing an individual with appropriate skills and experience from within the civil service before the role of Principal Cyber Security Risk Consultant was externally advertised.

Oliver Dowden: The Principal Cyber Security Risk Consultant is a highly specialised role focussed on the information and cyber security of the digital services GDS builds, operates and uses. This is an interim role of 12 months. There are very few specialists able to provide the required skills and they are in high demand across HMG and the Financial Services sector on an interim basis. After careful consideration, GDS determined that the variable nature of this work was better suited to a consultant.

European Parliament: Elections

Helen Hayes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate  his Department has made of the proportion of EU citizens living in the UK who are not registered to vote in the upcoming European Parliament elections.

Kevin Foster: The Cabinet Office does not hold information on the numbers of eligible electors norinformation on the number of European nationals resident in the UK who do or do notregister to vote in European Parliamentary electionsEstimates of the number of eligible people on the registers for electoral events arepublished by the Electoral Commission following each poll, but do not include a breakdownof the numbers of EU citizens eligible to vote. These reports are available online at:www.electoralcommission.org.uk.Each Electoral Registration Officer maintains a register for their own local area. Someheadline registration statistics by area are collated and published annually by the Office forNational Statistics, however, this does not include a breakdown of the numbers of EUcitizens registered to voteThe latest bulletin is available at:www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/elections/electoralregistration.

Local Government: Elections

Helen Hayes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate  his Department has made of the (a) number of voters and (b) proportion of the electorate that were turned away in areas taking part in voter ID trials during the local elections.

Kevin Foster: Voter ID is part of a body of work this Government is delivering to strengthen the integrityof our electoral system and give the public confidence our elections are secure and fitfor the 21st century.In line with the 2018 pilot evaluation, fully validated figures will be published as part of boththe Cabinet Office and the independent Electoral Commission's full evaluations of the2019 voter ID pilots in the summer. We will be looking carefully at the evaluations to helpinform our next steps and shape how the final policy will look when it is introduced.

Public Bodies: Tax Avoidance

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any public bodies have paid workers through disguised remuneration schemes in each of the last three years.

Oliver Dowden: Information on the pay arrangements for the staff of public bodies is not held centrally by the Cabinet Office and is a matter for the departments and public bodies themselves.

Cabinet Office: Surveys

Tommy Sheppard: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much his Department spent in each of the last twelve months on polling the general public on their perception of the strength of the union.

Kevin Foster: Cabinet Office expenditure over £25,000 is published on GOV.UK, alongside our regulartransparency reporting.

Department for International Trade

Department for International Trade: Sick Leave

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many and what proportion of officials in his Department took sick leave for reasons relating to stress in the last 12 months; what proportion that leave was of total sick leave taken in his Department; and what the cost was to his Department of officials taking sick leave over that period.

George Hollingbery: The number of employees in the Department for International Trade from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019 who were absent due to mental health reasons including stress was 39. This represented approximately 1% of employees. The proportion of sickness absence related to stress related reasons was 8.6% of the overall sickness absence for the department for the same time period. Recorded sickness absence figures include employees working in the UK and overseas and for UK Export Finance. They do not include contractors, secondees from other organisations or military staff. The estimated cost to the department from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2019 for employees taking sickness absence due to mental health reasons, including stress is estimated at £116,920. DIT continues to recognise and take seriously the wellbeing of its employees. DIT has in place policies and processes to identify, prevent and manage stress. The DIT policies introduced the provision of mental health first aiders who can provide a range of support to both employees and managers including access to our Employee Counselling Service.

Poultry Meat: USA

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on (a) UK farmers and (b) poultry welfare standards of the  importation of poultry washed with (i) chlorine and (ii) other disinfectants from the US.

George Hollingbery: We are committed to maintaining our rigorous standards on animal welfare and food safety after Brexit - high standards and high quality are what our domestic and global customers demand, and that is what we will provide.The existing food safety provisions regarding chlorine and other pathogen reduction treatments for poultry will be transferred into UK law by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act.

Overseas Trade

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what plans he has to ensure businesses have increased access to international procurement markets after the UK leaves the EU.

George Hollingbery: We have taken measures to safeguard the UK’s ability to continue to participate in the WTO Government Procurement Agreement. This means that British businesses will be able to continue to bid for government contracts worth an estimated £1.3 trillion annually in a range of sectors on substantially the same terms as they do now. The Government is also seeking continuity of existing EU trade agreements. Many of these agreements contain public procurement obligations that we will retain, including the recently signed agreements with Switzerland, Israel, Chile, the Andean Community and the Caribbean countries. This will provide guaranteed access for UK suppliers to public procurement opportunities in our global trade partners. As we pursue our independent trade policy after EU exit, we will seek ambitious and comprehensive Free Trade Agreements, including opportunities to increase access for UK suppliers to international procurement markets.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Cybercrime

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Cyber Essentials programme.

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he plans to update the content of the Cyber Essentials programme.

Margot James: An independent academic evaluation of the effectiveness of Cyber Essentials found that its security controls work well to mitigate the vast majority of Internet-based threats. These security controls are kept under continual review. The primary objective for Cyber Essentials is to help all organisations mitigate cyber security risks, especially small and medium-sized organisations. The Government continues to work to ensure Cyber Essentials has the greatest impact for the majority of the target audience and is currently developing the scheme to ensure a) the journey to certification is as simple as possible, and b) the technical controls remain fit for purpose in the ever-changing cyber threat landscape.

Cybercrime

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many businesses have been certified under (a) Cyber Essentials and (b) Cyber Essentials Plus.

Margot James: At the end of April 2019 the total number of Cyber Essentials certificates awarded to organisations was 26,712. Of these, (a) 21,948 were awarded at Cyber Essentials level and (b) 4,764 were awarded at Cyber Essentials Plus level.

Social Media: Young People

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the (a) addiction to and (b) anxiety caused by social media among young people.

Margot James: The DCMS and Home Office joint Online Harms White Paper outlines our plans to establish in law a new duty of care on companies towards their users, overseen by an independent regulator. This regulator will set clear safety standards, backed up by mandatory reporting requirements and effective enforcement powers. The government shares concerns around designed addiction and is determined to ensure that we have sufficient evidence on this risk, and the right expectations of companies to design their products in safe ways. We expect the regulator will continue to support research in this area to inform future action and, if necessary, set clear expectations for companies to prevent harm to their users. In February 2019, the UK Chief Medical Officers published their review on the impact of social media use on children and young people’s mental health, followed by advice on how to have a healthy balance with screen time. They concluded that the published scientific research is currently insufficient to support evidence-based guidelines on screen time, but there is enough basis to warrant a precautionary approach and action by schools, government and technology companies.

Museums and Galleries: Finance

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to support UK museums that are not in receipt of grant-in-aid funding; and whether he has made a recent estimate of the number of those museums that are not in receipt of such funding.

Mims Davies: DCMS directly supports 15 museums and galleries, comprising 37 sites across the country, with grant-in-aid funding. The Ministry of Defence supports three service museums with grant-in-aid. In addition to this, there are around 2500 museums in England, 1,322 of which are accredited, which do not receive grant-in-aid but are supported by government by at least one of 16 different sources of public funding worth over £800 million per year, as outlined in the Mendoza Review: an independent review of museums in England published in November 2017. This includes the Arts Council England, an arm’s-length body of the department, which is the development agency for museums in England and supports museums in several ways including through its National Portfolio programme. Around half of the Accredited sector in England is independent museums with varied sources of income.

OnSide Youth Zones

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the oral contribution of the Home Secretary of 15 May 2019, Official Report, column 274, how much Government funding was provided to OnSide Youth Zones from (a) 2015 to (b) 2018.

Mims Davies: DCMS, in partnership with the National Lottery Community Fund, is providing over £2m to OnSide Youth Zones through the Youth Investment Fund (2017-2020). This is supporting the expansion and creation of open access youth services in the Wirral, Wolverhampton and Barking and Dagenham. Local programmes funded by DCMS and delivered through delivery partners are also delivered in OnSide Youth Zones. For example a money management programme through the Savers Support Fund, programmes through the Sport for Development fund and National Citizen Service local delivery.

Lotteries: Charities

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the nfpSynergy report entitled Small Change: How charity lottery limits impact on small charities, published on 24 April 2019.

Mims Davies: The findings of the nfpSynergy report provided useful analysis of the impact of the current society lottery limits on the charity sector. We are considering the report’s findings alongside all evidence gathered in the society lotteries consultation. I hope to respond to the consultation before the summer recess.

Bridges

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department plans to remove the construction and maintenance of bridges from the list of allowed charitable purposes for registered charities.

Mims Davies: There are no plans to change the legal test for charitable status as set out in the Charities Act 2011.

Third Sector: Capital Investment

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of organisations set up by the Government to provide capital to (a) social entrepreneurs, (b) community businesses and (c) voluntary organisations.

Mims Davies: Government has not set up any such organisation. Government does provide funding to a range of independent organisations that provide capital to social entrepreneurs, community businesses and voluntary organisations, including the Social Investment Business, Bridges, Key Fund, and the Social Tech Trust. Government continues to monitor the performance of all of this funding on an ongoing basis.

National Lottery Community Fund

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment he has made of the geographical equity of funding provided by the National Lottery Community Fund.

Mims Davies: The National Lottery Community Fund distributes funds to a wide geographical spread of projects, primarily delivered by the voluntary and community sector and social enterprises. Funds are distributed on the basis of need, taking into account relative population sizes and levels of economic and social deprivation.

Electronic Government: Standards

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the number of pieces of legislation that are not up-to-date on the legislation.gov.uk website.

Margot James: Legislation.gov.uk carries the full range of UK primary and secondary legislation and aims to bring, and keep, all primary legislation up to date. As at 23rd May 2019, 98.7% of primary legislation is now up to date, which equates to approximately 100 Acts still in progress. For more detailed information on legislation.gov.uk’s coverage and policies please see https://www.legislation.gov.uk/

Tourism: East Midlands

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport how much funding from the public purse was allocated to support tourism in the East Midlands in 2016-17.

Mims Davies: In 2016 there were 363,064 international visits to Nottinghamshire, up 29% on the previous year. These visitors spent £128 million in Nottinghamshire, up 23% on the previous year. VisitBritain and VisitEngland are responsible for promoting the UK as a tourist destination, through a range of different initiatives and campaigns. VisitBritain receive annual grant-in-aid totalling £19.4m from DCMS and VisitEngland receive £7m. The Discover England Fund, administered by VisitEngland, has invested in the development of tourism product across the East Midlands area. Projects such as The Explorer’s Road, the US Connections project and the England’s Literary Greats have all received funding. Information from the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government indicate that Local Authorities spent £5.2m on tourism in 2016-17.

Motor Sports: Females

Mr Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to promote women’s participation in motorsport.

Mims Davies: The government is determined to get more girls and women taking part in sport in a way that suits them, something we set out in our sport strategy, Sporting Future. Motor sports and motor cycling clubs and associations are eligible to apply to Sport England for funding and I would encourage them to consider this as an option to help increase participation. I also welcome the recently launched W Series, including a race in the UK. The W Series will showcase women's motorsport to an international audience and provide new routes into the sport for women. I applaud the decision of Channel 4 to broadcast the W Series in the UK, celebrating female racing talent and hopefully inspiring a new generation of fans.

Sports Competitors: Females

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that there is adequate support for sportswomen dealing with the effect of periods.

Mims Davies: Periods should never be a taboo subject. Women and girls should never feel embarrassed to speak out about their menstrual cycle and how it affects their performance. We have a responsibility to break down barriers for women and ensure that coaches and sporting organisations are able to help female athletes reach their full potential. I welcome the work that the English Institute of Sport are doing through their SMARTHer campaign to open up conversations amongst athletes, coaches and staff in high performance sport around athletes’ menstrual cycles in order to improve support. Sport England are also supporting the new government taskforce to tackle period poverty, primarily around actions to tackle the stigma and taboos relating to women in sport (and particularly their impact on teenage participation in physical activity in schools).

House of Commons Commission

Palace of Westminster: Industrial Health and Safety

Jo Stevens: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, on how many occasions falling debris has been recorded at the Palace of Westminster in the last 12 months.

Tom Brake: Holding answer received on 21 May 2019



There have been eight recorded stone falls at the Palace of Westminster over the last 12 months. No injuries were sustained.

Parliamentary Estate: Food

Jo Stevens: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, what proportion of food stuffs sourced for food outlets on the Parliamentary estate were produced in the UK in the latest period for which figures are available.

Tom Brake: Although all of our products are fully traceable to source, the House Service does not record or hold the information in respect of sourcing from one particular country or region. This information is held by the relevant suppliers. Whilst suppliers are able to provide full traceability on any given product, for logistical reasons they would not be able to provide information to the level of detail requested because where our products are sourced may change from time to time.The vast majority of fresh products, such as meat, poultry, dairy, eggs, bread, ice cream, and most fruit and vegetables when in season are sourced from within the UK. This is possible because, in the first instance, we demand that UK or equivalent standards of welfare and production must be met as this is a consideration of ethics and quality rather than origin.The House Service sources products that are produced to higher environmental standards where possible.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Vox

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department have met with representatives of the Spanish political party Vox.

Mr Robin Walker: No members of the Department for Exiting the European Union have met with representatives of the Spanish political party Vox on DExEU business or in a Ministerial capacity. During his time as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, the Honourable Member for Daventry met with representatives of Vox in a political capacity. DExEU was not involved in the meeting.